Wyndham Worldwide CEO: 'We Are Seeing Great Momentum'

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The world’s largest hotel operator Wyndham Worldwide Corporation WYN came out with better than expected fourth-quarter earnings on Tuesday.

The company reported an EPS of $0.90 for the quarter, compared to $0.73 it reported for the same quarter last year and the expected EPS of $0.86.

Stephen Holmes, Wyndham Worldwide CEO, was on CNBC recently to diiscuss the company’s earnings and the impact of strengthening dollar on the earnings.

How Badly Are You Affected By The Strong Dollar?

“Not terribly affected. For us, it was a 1 percent decline in our EBITDA. Our revenues are flatter, up a little. And actually our earnings per share, we raised the guidance for 2015,” Holmes said.

“So, there’s an impact to all businesses. From our standpoint, we want our managers focussed on running the business not focussed on what foreign currency translations are doing.”

What Is Helping Free Up The Cash Flow?

“We were delivering $750 million a year back when the economy wasn’t so good,” Holmes replied. “We have got a phenomenal collection of businesses; they have incredible resilience.

“So, all the things – the umbrella marketing campaign, dynamic pricing – all those contribute to the performance of the business. But at the end of the day, we – our managers – have to get up and perform and find ways to improve their business and grow their business.”

Related Link: Hotel Stocks Soar Amid Positive News

Late Cycle Purchases

When asked about the recent purchase of Dolce Hotels for $57 million and the timing of the purchase, Holmes responded that the purchase really wasn't that late in the cycle. “Well not for us. We are a franchise business and in this case, a manager of hotels. We are not buying the hard assets; we are buying the brand. And sometimes the best time to buy a brand is the bottom of the cycle,” Holmes said.

“So, I am not saying we are at of the bottom of the cycle; I am not even saying we are turning [...] We are seeing great momentum starting this year, we are not seeing a slowdown in our projections for the year.”

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Posted In: CNBCTravelMediaGeneralCNBCDolce HotelsLodging IndustryStephen Holmes
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