Sébastien Bazin, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Accor, said:
“Business momentum remained very strong in the quarter, with the Group’s RevPAR and revenue well above their 2019 levels. Excluding Asia-Pacific, where activity is now recovering, all regions saw growth compared with 2019. These strong performances, coupled with strict operational and financial discipline, give us confidence in our ability to reach the upper end of our full-year EBITDA guidance range, which should be between €610 million and €640 million.”
The sharp improvement in activity seen since the start of the year was confirmed in the third quarter of 2022. For the second consecutive quarter, the Group’s RevPAR exceeded its 2019 level and Asia is now the only country performing below its pre-crisis level. Demand from domestic and international leisure travelers was very strong over the summer, leading to a significant increase in prices, and September benefited from renewed demand from business travelers for major trade shows and fairs.
During the third quarter of 2022, Accor opened 93 hotels representing 15,300 rooms, i.e., net unit growth of 2.4% in the last 12 months. This represents a significant increase in the number of rooms opened compared with the first semester of 2022.
At end-September 2022, the Group had a hotel portfolio of 789,152 rooms (5,357 hotels) and a pipeline of 212,000 rooms (1,218 hotels).
For 2022, the Group is confirming its forecast of net network growth of around 3.5%.
Consolidated revenue
The Group reported Q3 2022 revenue of €1,149 million, up 83% like-for-like compared with Q3 2021. By activity, this growth breaks down into an 84% increase for HotelServices and 80% for Hotel Assets & Other. To provide a comparison with RevPAR (change presented versus 2019 throughout this release), the like-for-like increase in revenue versus Q3 2019 is 9%.
Changes in the consolidation scope, mainly due to the consolidation of Ennismore, and the reopening of Pullman Montparnasse contributed positively by €14 million.
Currency effects had a positive impact of €60 million, mainly linked to the US dollar (-14%).
HotelServices revenue
HotelServices, which includes fees from Management & Franchise (M&F) and Services to Owners, reported €874 million in revenue, up 84% like-for-like versus Q3 2021 (up 9% like-for-like versus Q3 2019). This increase provides confirmation of the sharp improvement in activity seen since the start of the year.
Revenue in Management & Franchise (M&F) stood at €308 million, up 93% like-for-like versus Q3 2021 (up 10% like-for-like versus Q3 2019), with regional performances correlated to the business recovery in the countries considered.
The Group’s RevPAR was up 14% overall in Q3 2022 versus Q3 2019, confirming the sharp improvement in activity seen since the start of the year, with Group RevPAR exceeding its 2019 level for the second consecutive quarter.
In Q3 2022, RevPAR in South Europe was 11% above the Q3 2019 level.
• In France, Q3 2022 RevPAR was up 11% versus Q3 2019. The country enjoyed a very strong summer season thanks to demand from domestic and international leisure travelers. The return of international travelers boosted the performance in the Paris region, which is now in line with the regional cities. In September, demand from business travelers contributed to the ongoing rebound in occupancy rates, which are now close to pre-crisis levels.
• In Spain, RevPAR was up 9% in Q3 2022 versus Q3 2019.
In Q3 2022, RevPAR in North Europe was up 9% versus Q3 2019, a very sharp sequential improvement compared with the previous quarter.
• Germany was the main contributor to this strong sequential improvement. It caught up to the rest of Europe after seeing a delayed business recovery, as it took longer to lift its Covid-related health restrictions.
• The uptrend in the United Kingdom has been confirmed over the entire quarter, confirming RevPAR levels above those of Q3 2019.
RevPAR continued to improve sequentially in Asia-Pacific at +9 percentage points between Q2 2022 and Q3 2022. It was down 9% in Q3 2022 versus Q3 2019.
• Pacific confirmed the performance already seen in Q2 2022 with a 15% increase in Q3 2022 versus Q3 2019. This increase was strongly driven by prices.
• There were some, albeit moderate, signs of improvement in China, with a slight recovery in activity over the summer. However, the restrictions implemented as part of the strict enforcement of its “zero-Covid” policy continued to have an adverse impact on activity.
• In South East Asia, RevPAR was down 21% in Q3 2022 versus Q3 2019. Here as well, there were signs of a recovery with notably the return of international guests.
In the India, Middle East, Africa & Turkey region, RevPAR was up 68% versus Q3 2019, boosted by hyperinflation and the very strong summer season in Turkey.
• The United Arab Emirates continued to perform well thanks to demand from leisure and business travelers.
• In Saudi Arabia, the nature of the activity makes it dependent on the seasonality of the religious calendar.
In the Americas, Q3 2022 RevPAR was 12% higher than in Q3 2019.
• In North/Central America and the Caribbean, Q3 2022 RevPAR was slightly above the 2019 level, driven by a sharp increase in prices.
• In South America, and particularly Brazil, the pick-up in business volumes was notably impressive. Occupancy rates improved and remained above the 2019 level throughout Q3 2022.
Services to Owners revenue, which includes the Sales, Marketing, Distribution and Loyalty division, as well as shared services and the reimbursement of hotel staff costs, came to €566 million in the third quarter of 2022, up 8% compared with 2019.
Hotel Assets & Other revenue
At end-September 2022, this segment, which includes owned and leased hotels, represented 115 hotels and 22,656 rooms.
Revenue in the “Hotel Assets & Other” segment was up 80% like-for-like in Q3 2022 versus Q3 2021 (up 6% like-for-like versus Q3 2019). This segment, which is very closely tied to activity in Australia, continued to benefit from demand from leisure travelers in the coastal areas. The major cities are starting to benefit from renewed demand from business travelers.
Since early 2021, this segment has included concierge services, luxury home rentals, private sales of hotel stays and digital services for hotel owners. All these activities benefited from the uptrend in tourism.
EBITDA guidance for FY22
Thanks to the positive impact of marketing and sales investments made in first half of 2022, the strict discipline maintained on cost base and the strong pace of activity, the Group is rising its 2022 EBITDA guidance on September 28, 2022. Initially announced at above €550 million, it was then revised upwards to €610 million to €640 million. The Group is now confident it can reach the upper end of this full-year EBITDA guidance range.
Events in third-quarter 2022
On July 5, 2022, the Group announced that it is changing its structure to capitalize on the transformation undertaken in recent years, consolidate its leadership positions, focus its efforts, strengthen its know-how, accelerate its growth and continue to improve its profitability. As such, Accor will leverage two divisions comprising separate and distinctive expertise with the aim of further strengthening the excellence of each of these business lines, improving their operational and financial performance, offering its owners and guests even more relevant products and services, and attracting the best talents.
From October 1, 2022, Accor will be structured around two dedicated divisions:
• “Economy, Midscale & Premium Division”, comprising notably the Group’s brands ibis, Novotel, Mercure, Swissôtel, Mövenpick and Pullman.
• “Luxury & Lifestyle Division”, bringing together Accor’s luxury brands as well as the Group’s Lifestyle entity, Ennismore.
To support the implementation and ensure the roll-out of this new structure, Accor’s Board of Directors has confirmed its support for the Group’s leadership and unanimously decided to propose the renewal of Sébastien Bazin’s term as Chairman and CEO at the next Annual General Meeting called to approve the 2022 financial statements.
On September 28, 2022, Accor announced that it entered into exclusive negotiations with Valesco Group to sell its Paris headquarters building, “Sequana Tower”, for €465 million. The disposal is subject to a 12-year sale and leaseback agreement. The transaction, which is subject to the usual due diligence procedures, is expected to be completed by the end of the year. It is part of the Group's asset-light strategy, which aims to simplify Accor's balance sheet structure.
