Wyndham Hotels Sets Record Growth in 2024 with 68,700 New Rooms Worldwide
WYNDHAM HOTELS & RESORTS reported strong development growth in 2024, opening a record 68,700 rooms globally, including 28,000 in the U.S., achieving 4 percent year-over-year growth. The company’s global development pipeline reached approximately 2,100 hotels and 252,000 rooms at year-end, a record high and a 5 percent year-over-year increase.
Wyndham’s global RevPAR grew 5 percent in the fourth quarter and 2 percent year-over-year, while U.S. RevPAR increased 5 percent in the fourth quarter and remained flat for the full year, the company said in a statement.
“We’re proud to report a very strong finish to 2024 with net rooms growth of 4 percent and comparable adjusted EBITDA growth of 7 percent,” said Geoff Ballotti, Wyndham’s president and CEO. “Our team’s focus on expanding into higher FeePAR markets, growing our extended-stay footprint and unlocking new ancillary revenue streams underscores the diverse growth opportunities inherent in our asset-light, resilient business model.”
The company’s net income rose 70 percent to $85 million in the fourth quarter, while full-year 2024 net income reached $289 million.
Key highlights
- Global RevPAR grew 5 percent in the fourth quarter compared to 2023 in constant currency, a 400-basis-point sequential improvement. Full-year global RevPAR rose 2 percent year-over-year in constant currency.
- S. RevPAR increased 5 percent in the fourth quarter, a 600-basis-point sequential improvement, while full-year U.S. RevPAR remained flat.
- Systemwide rooms grew 4 percent year-over-year, including 4 percent growth in the U.S. midscale and above segments and a combined 7 percent increase in EMEA and Latin America.
- Opened a record 68,700 rooms globally, a 4 percent year-over-year increase, including nearly 28,000 in the U.S.
- Global retention rate reached a record 95.7 percent, rising 10 basis points year-over-year.
- Development pipeline grew 2 percent sequentially and 5 percent year-over-year to a record 252,000 rooms.
- Fourth-quarter net income rose 70 percent to $85 million, while adjusted net income grew 9 percent to $82 million, or approximately 13 percent on a comparable basis. Full-year 2024 net income was $289 million, flat year-over-year, while adjusted net income increased 2 percent to $347 million, or approximately 4 percent on a comparable basis.
- Fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA rose 9 percent to $168 million, or approximately 12 percent on a comparable basis. Full-year 2024 adjusted EBITDA increased 5 percent to $694 million, or approximately 7 percent on a comparable basis.
Development trends
- U.S. pipeline grew 7 percent, while the international pipeline increased 4 percent.
- Eighteenth consecutive quarter of sequential pipeline growth.
- About 70 percent of the pipeline is in midscale and above segments, which grew 5 percent year-over-year.
- Extended-stay segment accounts for approximately 17 percent of the pipeline.
- About 58 percent of the pipeline is international.
- Nearly 78 percent of the pipeline is new construction, with approximately 35 percent of these projects underway.
RevPAR analysis
Fourth-quarter global RevPAR rose 5 percent in constant currency from 2023, with 5 percent growth in the U.S., which strengthened throughout the quarter, and 6 percent growth internationally, the statement said. Full-year global RevPAR was flat on a reported basis, aligning with the company’s outlook, but grew 2 percent in constant currency, reflecting flat U.S. growth and 8 percent international growth.
In the U.S., fourth-quarter results included a 140-basis-point boost from hurricanes; excluding this, RevPAR grew 4 percent year-over-year, driven by strong weekday business bookings and weekend leisure demand. U.S. RevPAR improved 620 basis points sequentially from the third quarter, or 480 basis points excluding hurricane impacts.
International RevPAR growth was driven by a 6 percent ADR increase in constant currency, while occupancy remained flat. EMEA and Latin America saw the strongest gains, rising 15 percent collectively in the fourth quarter. In contrast, China’s RevPAR fell 11 percent, driven by a 10 percent ADR decline.
2025 outlook
Wyndham targets 2025 room growth of 3.6 to 4.6 percent and expects global RevPAR to rise 2 to 3 percent, driven by leisure demand and infrastructure-related bookings. The company projects adjusted EBITDA of $745 million to $755 million and adjusted net income of $369 million to $379 million.
“What excites us most about our future is the developer interest in and demand for our brands both here and overseas, reflected in a pipeline that grew another 5 percent to a record quarter of a million rooms that will open in the coming years with significant FeePAR premiums compared to our existing system,” Ballotti said. “This, when coupled with improving customer demand we’re seeing across both our leisure and infrastructure segments, lays a solid foundation for sustained momentum and meaningful value creation for our shareholders, guests, franchisees and team members for many years to come.”
Wyndham plans to expand its economy and midscale brands while adding upscale and lifestyle offerings in 2025, alongside enhancing technology and digital capabilities to improve owner and guest experiences.
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