Sales see Peel looking for opportunities
PEEL Hotels, which owns the Midland in Bradford and the Golden Lion in Leeds, has wiped out its £15m debts thanks to property sales and is now looking to take advantage of “weakness” in the property market.
The company, run by former Thistle Hotels chief executive Robert Peel, made pre-tax profits of £1.4m in the year to February 10, more than double the £713,000 it made the previous year.
However the sale of the Avon Gorge Hotel in Bristol for £15.5m and a £2m deal for its plot of land in Salem Street, Bradford which has planning permission for 99 apartments plus offices and car parking, saw the company produce exceptional profits of £8.1m which has helped cut its net debt to just £40,000 from £15.3m.
Turnover for the year was down 4.8% to £15.1m. It is paying a one-off bonus dividend of 15p a share.
Mr Peel said that work is still ongoing to repair the kitchen, restaurant and 11 bedrooms at the Golden Lion which were damaged by a fire last September, however it had still been able to increase profits after depreciation by 12% over the year.
He said restoration is continuing at the Midland Hotel in Bradford plus two luxury bedroom suites have been added to complement its growing conference and banqueting business.
The historic hotel has hosted Laurel and Hardy and the Beatles as well as every Prime Minister up to Harold Wilson. Sir Henry Irving, the Victorian actor-manager, died in the Midland in 1905.
Peel Hotels is listed on the AIM market and more than 50% owned by Robert Peel and his brother Charles, the founder of Peel Hunt stockbrokers.
Mr Peel said: “We are in an excellent position, with effectively no net debt to take advantage of any weakness in the property market should that occur and we continually review hotels that are on the market. There is still plenty to do in regard to adding value to our existing portfolio and growing profits organically which in turn will self fund capital improvements and deliver to shareholders a progressive dividend policy.”
The group also owns hotels in Peterborough, Newcastle, Nottingham, Wallingford, Carlisle and Dunfermline.
