Sonesta Announces Second Quarter Earnings

• Press Release
• Source: Sonesta International Hotels Corporation
• On 4:44 pm EDT, Thursday August 13, 2009

BOSTON, Aug. 13, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sonesta International Hotels Corporation (Nasdaq:SNSTA - News) today reported a net loss of $109,000, or $(0.03) per share, in the quarter ended June 30, 2009, compared to net income of $1,506,000, or $0.41 per share, in the quarter ended June 30, 2008. Revenues, excluding other revenues from managed and affiliated properties, were $16,497,000 in the 2009 quarter, compared to $20,422,000 in the 2008 quarter. The Company had operating income of $363,000 in the second quarter of 2009, compared to $2,730,000 during the same period in 2008.

Related Quotes

Symbol	Price	Change
SNSTA	9.05	-0.20

{"s" : "snsta","k" : "c10,l10,p20,t10","o" : "","j" : ""}

For the six-month period ended June 30, 2009 the net loss was $2,321,000, or $(0.63) per share, compared to net income of $1,596,000, or $0.43 per share, for the six-month period ended June 30, 2008. Revenues, excluding other revenues from managed and affiliated properties, were $29,600,000 in the 2009 period, compared to $38,220,000 in the 2008 period. The operating loss was $2,037,000 in the six-month period ended June 30, 2009, compared to operating income of $2,810,000 in the same period in 2008.

Challenging economic conditions continued to have a severe negative impact on the Company's business in the 2009 second quarter. Both of the Company's Royal Sonesta Hotels, in Boston and New Orleans, experienced lower demand, in particular from the group and convention market segments. The Boston hotel had a particularly poor quarter, experiencing a 25% revenue decline compared to the 2008 second quarter. Fee income from management activities also decreased in the 2009 second quarter, mainly due to reductions in revenues and profits at the Company's Sonesta Bayfront Hotel Coconut Grove, in Miami, and the Company's managed properties in Egypt.

For full details on our results for the second quarter of 2009 please refer to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended June 30, 2009, which was filed on August 13, 2009. This report may be accessed through our website, Sonesta.com.

 SONESTA INTERNATIONAL HOTELS CORPORATION

 Financial Summary

 (000 omitted except for per    Three months ended  Six months ended
  share data)                        June 30             June 30
                                  2009      2008      2009      2008

 Operating revenues             $16,497   $20,422   $29,600   $38,220
   Other revenues from managed
    and affiliated properties     1,082     1,346     2,303     6,463
                               --------- --------- --------- ---------
 Total revenues                  17,579    21,768    31,903    44,683

 Costs and expenses, including
  depreciation and amortization (16,134)  (17,692)  (31,637)  (35,410)
   Other expenses from managed
    and affiliated properties    (1,082)   (1,346)   (2,303)   (6,463)
                               --------- --------- --------- ---------
 Total expenses                 (17,216)  (19,038)  (33,940)  (41,873)

 Operating income (loss)            363     2,730    (2,037)    2,810

 Other income (deductions):
   Interest expense                (718)     (742)   (1,434)   (1,489)
   Interest income                   85       242       208       613
   Gain (loss) on sales of
    assets                           (4)       21        (2)      443
   Other income (deductions)         (7)        4       (18)       11
                               --------- --------- --------- ---------
                                   (644)     (475)   (1,246)     (422)

 Income (loss) before income
  taxes                            (281)    2,255    (3,283)    2,388

   Federal, foreign and state
    income tax provision
    (benefit)                      (172)     749       (962)      792
                               --------- --------- --------- ---------

 Net income (loss)                ($109)   $1,506   ($2,321)   $1,596

 Net income (loss) per share of
  common stock                   ($0.03)    $0.41    ($0.63)    $0.43

 Average number of common
  shares outstanding              3,698     3,698     3,698     3,698

Sonesta International Hotels Corporation
Boy van Riel
(617) 421-5444