Aug 3 - Marriott International acknowledged on Tuesday that the Delta variant had stalled recovery in Asia Pacific in the second quarter and said it would remain vigilant of any further impacts on a recovery in hotel occupancy.
Shares of the world's largest hotel chain, whose profit beat posted a loss beat, fell 1.9% as the broader market also fell due to concerns over Delta variant, first detected in India.
Marriott said recovery in its Asia Pacific region excluding China, stalled in the quarter before picking up pace as some countries imposed lockdowns due to a rise in infections.
The hotel operator continues to struggle to fill up rooms, with occupancy falling well below the rates seen before pandemic but recovering from last year's lows.
We will continue to watch the pace of vaccinations around the world, the effectiveness of those vaccinations relative to Delta Marriott Chief Executive Anthony Capuano said.
Delta is as contagious as chicken pox and far more infectious than the common cold or flu. It now covers more than 80% of new cases nationwide and has been diagnosed in more than 90 countries.
Ritz-Carlton, which owns the hotel brand Marriott, said that second quarter occupancy in its key U.S. Canada and Greater China markets rose to 56.1% and 62.4%, respectively, compared to 19.6% and 35.5% a year earlier.
Comparable RevPAR a key performance measure fell 43.8% during the quarter compared to the second quarter of 2019 - 31.2%
Shares of rivals Hilton and Hyatt declined 2.7% and 2.8%, respectively.
Excluding items, Refinitiv earned 79 cents per share compared to analysts’ average estimate of 45 cents per share, according to IBES data from Marriott.
Revenue rose to $3.15 billion, but fell short of expected forecast at $3.21 billion.