Hotel owners share €7.6m dividend as profits soar
THE owners of the five-star Merrion hotel in Dublin last year shared a bumper €7.6m dividend payout as profits at the hotel soared.
The luxury hotel last year enjoyed record profits and revenues as it continued to benefit from the boom in the Dublin hospitality sector.
Record room rates at the Merrion sent pre-tax profits increasing by 45pc from to €2.3m to €3.4m.
New accounts for Hotel Merrion Ltd show that the best ever performance by the hotel resulted in the pre-tax profits rising sharply on the back of revenues increasing by 10pc, from €19.6m to €21.5m.
The company paid out a dividend of €102,422 in 2015 and followed this up with a dividend payout last year of €7.66m.
The dividend was shared between Lochlann Quinn and billionaire Martin Naughton, who each own 25pc of the company, and the Northern-based Hastings Hotel Group which owns the remaining 50pc.
The Merrion, situated opposite Government Buildings, is the hotel of choice for superstar Bruce Springsteen and a host of Hollywood A-listers when in Dublin. The multi-award winning hotel comprises 123 rooms and 19 suites.
According to the directors’ report, “the hotel had a good year with revenues, room rates and occupancy being at their highest levels reflecting a strong performance by the Dublin market”.
The directors added that “the near term outlook remains strong and we believe we can maintain revenues and profitability”.
Online advertised room rates at the hotel yesterday ranged from €289 for a ‘Standard Queen’ room to €2,802 per night for the Penthouse Suite.
Numbers employed by the hotel — which houses Ireland’s only two-Michelin star restaurant, Restaurant Patrick Guil- baud — last year fell from 286 to 283 with staff costs increasing from €7.88m to €8.189m.
The figures show that 66 staff are in management and 217 are hotel staff.
The profit last year takes account of non-cash depreciation costs of €664,805.
The revenues last year translate into an average revenue per room of €151,671 at the luxury hotel and this average also includes ancillary revenues such as bar and food.
A breakdown of revenues show €14m from accommodation; €6.7m from food and beverage; €695,657 in ‘other income’; and €459,443 from the leisure centre.