Millennium lifted by profits rise

Hotels group Millennium & Copthorne today said a strong performance by its London sites helped more than double profits during a “pivotal” year.

M&C, whose profits slumped last year due to factors such as the Iraq war and the SARS outbreak, saw pre-tax profits before exceptionals rise to £55m (€79.9M) in the year to December 31, against £26.4m (€38.3M) last time.

Based in Surrey, England, M&C owns and operates 87 four-star and five-star hotels in 16 countries. The group said today that the London hotel market saw a strong improvement in 2004, with the key revpar measure – revenue per available room – coming in at £66.62 (€96.75) against £59.74 (€86.76) last time.

Millennium Knightsbridge led the recovery, showing the fastest rate of growth in the British capital. The company also benefited from stronger performances in Asia and New York.

Although this part of the year is not significant for the company, it said it was encouraged by the early signs for 2005.

Chairman Kwek Leng Beng said: “2004 was a pivotal year for the group. We have finished with a significantly higher hotel operating performance and a substantial profit from asset disposals.”

The company, which has 2,200 employees in the UK and 12,300 staff worldwide, has been raising cash through selling property, and in October completed the sale of its 50% stake in New York’s prestigious Plaza hotel for £376m (€546m). This helped bring group debt down to £479m (€695.7m) from £681m (€989m).

Turnover rose by 4.6% to £547.1m (€794.7m) during the year, while the total dividend will be doubled to 12.5p. At the bottom line, pre-tax profits were £94.8m (€137.7m) compared with £18.7m (€27.2m) last time.

It also said it had set up a team aimed at boosting the profitability of its regional UK hotels. The group will take charge of the 11 Copthorne hotels as well as two Millennium sites in Reading and Glasgow.