NH Hotel Group’s 2022 Performance and Strategic Moves
NH Hotel Group, a company owned by Minor International, reported a net profit of 100 million euros for 2022. This marks the first positive annual result since 2019, when earnings reached 90 million euros, according to data presented to the National Securities Market Commission. Total revenue stood at 1,759 million euros, a 2.4 percent increase over the 2019 level.
The rebound in international tourism across Spain in 2022 revived profits for the NH hotel chain, which had not posted a positive year since before the pandemic. The company cited asset rotation, pricing discipline, and cost controls as core contributors to the improvement. Net recurring profit reached 76 million euros in 2022, confirming a return to annual profitability for the group. In the first quarter, when the quarter’s shorter effect is discounted, regular net profit from April to December 2022 reached 156 million euros, up 29 percent from the same period in 2019.
Capital gains from the rotation of non-strategic assets, including net gains from asset rotation, helped push total net profit beyond the 2019 level of 90 million to 100 million in 2022.
1.759 Million Revenue
NH Hotel Group recorded total revenue of 1,759 million euros in 2022. This contrasts with 834 million in 2021 and is 2.4 percent above the 1,718 million achieved in 2019, the last full year before the pandemic. The company noted quarterly performance with 234 million euros in the first quarter, 509 million in the second, 516 million in the third, and 501 million in the fourth quarter.
Pricing strategy and disciplined cost control drove EBITDA to 519 million euros, driven largely by the adverse impact of the first quarter in the prior year. Excluding the IFRS 16 accounting effect, EBITDA was 250 million euros in the April–December period, up 11.5 percent versus the same period in 2019, as reported to the CNMV.
Alongside stronger demand for major conventions and long-haul international travel, NH continued to reactivate business travel, offsetting some slower demand in the entertainment sector across large organizations.
Debt Reduction
NH’s net financial debt declined from 568 million euros to 308 million euros by 31 December 2022, marking a period of improving liquidity. The company continued to reduce indebtedness, repaying 200 million euros of the 250 million euro ICO loan extended during the Covid period in 2022. In January 2023, the remaining 50 million of that syndicated loan was repaid, further decreasing variable cost debt from 47 percent to 25 percent and strengthening resilience against potential Euribor rises.
Price Recovery
Average daily rate improvements and revenue per available room helped offset lower occupancy in 2022 relative to 2019. The group reported an average ADR of 74 euros for 2022, slightly above the 2019 level despite the first-quarter challenges. ADR gains remained evident through the year, with performance skewing higher in later quarters.
In 2019, ADR was higher, with quarterly milestones showing up to 128–130 euros. Year-on-year ADR growth excluding the first quarter reached roughly 22 percent, with occupancy averaging 61 percent for 2022, pressured by the first-quarter micron effects, before rebounding to higher levels in the remainder of the year. Spain posted an average daily rate of 123 euros, about 10 percent above 2019, while occupancy hovered around 69 percent, five percentage points below pre-pandemic levels.
Management highlighted that the revenue increase came from robust performance in secondary cities and notable gains in Madrid and Barcelona from the second quarter onward due to renewed business travel and conferences. In Italy, ADR rose 14 percent to 154 euros with occupancy at 63 percent, while major markets like Milan led the uplift as the year progressed. In the Benelux, ADR climbed 11 percent to 139 euros with occupancy easing to 57 percent, and in Central Europe ADR rose 11 percent to 107 euros with a 55 percent occupancy. Latin America saw occupancy at 58 percent with ADR at 76 euros, as Argentina, Colombia, and Chile showed improvements while Mexico recovered more gradually.