Hyatt Hotels Corp. shares began trading on the New York Stock Exchange today as the company completed a nearly $1 billion initial public offering, taking the company public for the first time in decades.
The company, which as of June 30 had a portfolio of 413 properties and almost 120,000 rooms, on Wednesday offered 38 million shares priced at $25 each. Hyatt had been a private company for about 30 years, when the family of founder Jay Pritzker took Hyatt and its separate international interests—which were merged into a single company in 2004—private in 1979 and 1982, respectively.
Hyatt now is the third-largest U.S. hotel chain by revenue on the public market, topped only by Marriott International and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, according to data from Business Travel News' 2009 Business Travel Survey and Hyatt's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Hilton Hotels Corp. went private in 2007, following its acquisition by the Blackstone Group (BTNonline, July 9, 2007).
Hyatt's revenues totaled $3.8 billion in 2008, and 2009 revenues through June 30 were $1.6 billion, according to the registration statement Hyatt filed with the SEC prior to the IPO.
Source: Business Travel News