Singapore - Hospitality Sector

[winston]

STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-UOB bullish on tourism, hospitality

UOB Kay Hian said Singapore's tourism and hospitality sector is expected to benefit from strong visitor arrivals to the city-state.

UOB forecast visitor arrivals to reach 17 million by 2015, showing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.5 percent, higher than the historical 15-year CAGR of 4 percent.

"The market has underestimated visitor arrival growth potential, especially from the new growth avenues brought in by low-cost carriers, the International Cruise Terminal and new attractions including the River Safari at Mandai and Gardens by the Bay," UOB said.

The growth is supported by Singapore's growing stature as a major destination for gaming, medical tourism, as well as meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions, the broker said.

It maintained its "overweight" rating on the tourism and hospitality sector.

Its stock picks were Ascott Residence Trust , CDL Hospitality Trusts , Genting Singapore Plc , Raffles Medical Group Ltd and Starhill Global REIT .


Source: Reuters

[winston]

not vested

STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-DBS says S'pore tourism sector healthy

Singapore's tourist arrivals in April rose 9 percent from a year ago, and could point to a record breaking performance for hoteliers in the second quarter, which will benefit the hospitality sector, said DBS Vickers.

The brokerage also said the Singapore Tourism Board's (STB) target of 13.5 million to 14.5 million visitor arrivals this year could be exceeded.

According to STB data, tourism arrivals for the month of April rose 9 percent to 1.2 million from a year earlier, raising year-to-date arrivals to 4.8 million.

Hotel occupancy rates for April were at 87 percent with revenue per available room around S$227 per night, a 12 percent year-on-year jump, STB said.

"Visitor arrival numbers should continue to remain robust given the expected strong line-up of Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions events in coming months," DBS said.

Its top picks for the hospitality sector are CDL Hospitality Trusts , with a buy rating and target price of S$2.06, and Genting Singapore . It has a buy rating and target price of S$2.05 on Genting stocks.


Source: Reuters

[winston]

not vested

CDL Hospitality Trusts: Garden of Supertrees

Summary: Gardens by the Bay, officially opened last Thursday and the new Marina Bay Cruise Centre will solidify Marina Bay as a key tourist cluster to complement Sentosa.

STB has a target of 17m visitor arrivals by 2015, implying a growth rate of 6.6% p.a. from 2011.

Even with a “leakage” from the conversion of visitor arrivals into hotel rooms nights because cruise passengers are much less likely to book hotel rooms, we estimate that hotel room demand will grow by an enviable 6.4% p.a., easily outstripping the growth in hotel rooms, which we estimate at 3.7% p.a.

The 6.4% estimate conservatively assumes no change in hotel room nights per hotel guest.

We maintain a BUY rating on CDLHT and our fair value of S$2.04.

Source: OCBC

[winston]

not vested

STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-OCBC starts hospitality REITs with overweight

OCBC Investment Research initiated coverage of Singapore's hospitality real estate investment trust sector with an 'overweight' rating, and said it preferred CDL Hospitality Trusts to Ascott Residence Trust .

CDL units were up 0.8 percent at S$1.94 on Monday and have risen nearly 25 percent so far this year. Ascott units were flat at S$1.185 and have gained nearly 23 percent since the start of the year.

Singapore's buoyant hotel industry has been the key driver for CDL, whose six hotels in the city-state accounted for 77 percent of its 2011 fiscal year gross revenue, OCBC said. It has a 'buy' rating and a S$2.04 target price on CDL.

OCBC estimated that for 2012-2015, the demand for hotel rooms in Singapore will grow at 6.4 percent per annum, outstripping the hotel rooms supply growth projected at 3.7 percent per annum over the same period.

It said CDL has stronger potential growth profile and a gearing of 25.6 percent, lower than Ascott's 39.2 percent. OCBC expects CDL to make an acquisition within the next one year, either in Singapore or potentially higher-yielding markets abroad.

For Ascott, OCBC said despite the economic problems in Europe, income from the trust's assets in the region is "reasonably resilient", underpinned by its master leases and management contracts.

OCBC has a 'buy' recommendation and S$1.23 target price on Ascott.


Source: Reuters

[winston]

As Singapore Reinvents Itself, Hoteliers Reap Windfall By: Neerja Pawha Jetley

Even as Singapore’s trade-dependent economy faces risks in the wake of a global slowdown, one sector in this Southeast Asian island state stays upbeat.

In this year’s Forbes rich list for Singapore released in July, 10 of the 40 wealthiest individuals were either hoteliers or property tycoons with a growing stake in the hospitality business – an indicator of the robustness of the industry.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/48921896

[winston]

not vested

STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-OCBC downgrades hospitality sector to 'neutral'

OCBC Investment Research downgraded Singapore's hospitality sector to 'neutral' from 'overweight', citing a slowdown in the sector, but Ascott Residence Trust remains a top pick for its global exposure.

Hotel bookings up to next year's Chinese New Year in February are still weak, OCBC said in a note. It expects 2013 to see fewer MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) events.

"Hoteliers have also expressed concern over the upcoming competition that will result from the growth in hotel room supply, as new hotels typically provide substantial room rate discounts in the first few months of operation," the brokerage said.

OCBC has a 'buy' rating on Ascott with a target price of S$1.37, due to its exposure to growth regions such as Europe and developing Asia in the serviced residence industry.

By 0306 GMT, Ascott units were unchanged at S$1.305, but have surged 38 percent against a 34 percent rise in the FTSE ST Real Estate Industrial Trust <.FTFSTAS8670>.

However, the brokerage has 'hold' ratings on CDL Hospitality Trusts and Far East Hospitality Trust , with target prices of S$1.91 and S$1.02 respectively.


Source: Reuters

[behappyalways]

Four-star hotel room rates dropped 10-20% in 2Q13

Four-star hotel room rates dropped 10-20% in 2Q13

Competition was ''very stiff''.

The continuous roll-out of mid-scale hotels is predicted to bring Singapore's pricey average room rate (ARR) down, according to local travel consultants.

Mid-scale hotels that have debuted this year include The Ramada Singapore at Zhongshan Park, Days Hotel Singapore at Zhongshan Park (TTG Asia e-Daily, September 6, 2013), Park Avenue Changi and Dorsett Singapore (TTG Asia e-Daily, April 16, 2013). The Village Hotel Katong and The Amoy will also open their doors later in 2013.

In a report by CBRE Global Research and Consulting, some 11,000 rooms are expected to enter the market in the next four years. Mid-scale hotels will supply the largest number of rooms at 4,100 (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 1, 2013).

Luxury Tours & Travel's director, Michael Lee, said: “The entry of these new mid-scale hotels with comparatively lower hotel rates can help ease the typical high hotel rates by the bigger brands in the market.”

Sharing similar sentiments, Ramesh Travel Service's general manager, Ram Samtan, said the entry of such hotels was “significant in this price-sensitive market” and the impact had already been manifested in the recent dip in ARR.

Preliminary estimates from the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) reveal that ARR for January to April slipped 2.2 per cent year-on-year to S$253.70 (US$202.20), while revenue per available room was 2.6 per cent lower at S$217.80.

CTC Travel senior vice president, marketing and PR, Alicia Seah, noted that competition was “very stiff” among business hotels, and observed that four-star hotel rates had fallen 10-20 per cent year-on-year in Q2.

However, she highlighted that this effect was unlikely to spill over to other sectors, saying: “The five-star hotels will still hold up their rates because of their prime position and iconic status.”

Agreeing, Lee said: “These new mid-scale hotels will create more choices into the three- and four-star hotel segment, but (are) unlikely to pull traffic away from the upscale market.”

However, STB statistics also show that while room rates have softened slightly, the average occupancy rate for January to April held firm, edging down just 0.3 per cent to 86 per cent.

By: Lee Pei Qi
Source: http://ttgasia.com/article.php?article_id=21147

Singapore, June 11, 2013

http://sbr.com.sg/source/ttg-asia/four- ... 20-in-2q13

[behappyalways]

Hoteliers brace for slower growth on back of massive room glut
http://sbr.com.sg/hotels-tourism/news/h ... -room-glut

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Chart of the Day: Singapore’s 2,221 new hotel rooms to gather dust in 2015
http://sbr.com.sg/hotels-tourism/news/c ... st-in-2015

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Chart of the Day: Singapore’s hotels to see a sharp rebound after a weak 2014
http://sbr.com.sg/hotels-tourism/news/c ... -weak-2014