Jurys bidder does not have family support

The mystery bidder for hotel chain Jurys Doyle does not have the support of families owning one-third of the company, it emerged today.

The Dublin-based operator, which owns more than 30 hotels in Ireland, the UK and the United States, said the Beatty and Doyle families were not “connected with or have given their support to the unsolicited approach” announced on Monday.

Analysts believe a successful takeover could value the group at around €1bn.

Three members of the Doyle family own 22.7% of Jurys Doyle between them and two are members of the board, while former chairman Walter Beatty holds a 7.2% stake.

All are long-term investors in the company which was formed through the merger of the Jurys Hotels and Doyle chains in 1999.

Potential bidders for the chain are thought to include the team of investors that bought Dublin’s upmarket Shelbourne Hotel in January.

The Shelbourne was sold for €120m to investors led by hotelier John Sweeney, property developers Bernard McNamara and Gerry O’Reilly and property adviser Bernard Doyle.

Speculation has also centred on Quinlan Private, which snapped up London’s exclusive Savoy and three other luxury hotels last year.

In March, Jurys Doyle reported a 12.1% hike in turnover to €284.5m and pre-tax profits of €45.5m, which included one-off gains from hotel sales.