Sheraton Braintree Gets New Owner – Analyst Blog

The Sheraton Braintree Hotel, a 374-room hotel spanning across 10.2 acres in Braintree, Massachusetts, has recently got a new owner in the form of Carpenter & Co. Inc., a leading real estate company in the U.S. Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (HST), the largest lodging real estate investment trust (REIT) in the U.S., had sold Sheraton Braintree in February 2010 for $9.13 million to Karma Trustee LLC, a group of investors.

 

The hotel was then closed for extensive interior and exterior renovations and was expected to re-launch under a new owner. Sheraton Braintree employed about 125 full- and part-time workers, including 80 to 90 unionized workers, who are expected to retain their jobs once the hotel reopens.

 

Host Hotels recorded a profit of approximately $1 million on the sale of Sheraton Braintree. The company has been continually selling assets to repay its huge debt. In 2009, Host Hotels had sold six properties for net proceeds of about $200 million. At year-end 2009, the company had an outstanding debt of $5.4 billion.

 

Host Hotels had earlier reported a dismal fourth quarter 2009, with comparable hotel revenue per available room (RevPAR) declining 14.6% year-over-year, driven by a decrease in occupancy and sharp fall in average daily rates due to the prolonged economic downturn.

 

For full year 2009, comparable hotel RevPAR also decreased 19.9% year-over-year. Host Hotels anticipates the economic stress to negatively affect its operating results in 2010 as well, with comparable hotel RevPAR expected to decline approximately 1% to 5% for the full year.