AUSTIN, TEXAS — An affiliate of Hyatt Hotels Corp. (NYSE:H) has acquired its partners’ 92 percent interest in the 491-room Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort and Spa in Austin for approximately $143 million. Hyatt also assumed approximately $65 million of property level debt. The total price, inclusive of debt, implies a valuation of approximately $450,000 per key.
The resort has operated as Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort and Spa since it opened in 2006. Dallas-based Woodbine Development Corp. developed the resort and has served as the asset manager and managing general partner of Bastrop Resort Partners LP, the partnership entity that has owned the resort since its opening. Hyatt was one of the original co-owners and has managed the resort since its debut.
“Hyatt Regency Lost Pines is a sought-after destination by both leisure and group guests and has strengthened Hyatt’s presence in the Austin area, where Hyatt has a broad spectrum of lodging experiences,” says Steve Haggerty, global head of capital strategy, franchising and select service for Hyatt Hotels. “This transaction is consistent with our strategy to focus our investing in key areas such as resorts and group-oriented hotels. The resort’s financial and operating success of this property has made it a key asset in our portfolio, and whole ownership affords us greater control of the its future.”
Located on 405 acres along the banks of the Colorado River between Austin and Bastrop, Texas, Hyatt Regency Lost Pines features more than 60,000 square feet of indoor meeting space and more than 240,000 square feet of outdoor function space with pavilions and an amphitheater, as well as the Wolfdancer Golf Club, Spa Django, Crooked River Water Park and the Renegade Trailhead equestrian facility. The resort also features the adjoining 1,100-acre McKinney Roughs Nature Park.
Bastrop Resort Partners LP was created in 2003 to develop and own Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort and Spa. The partnership included affiliates of Woodbine Development, The Oklahoma Publishing Co., Cook Inlet Region Inc. and Hyatt Hotels Corp. Woodbine and its financial partner Hunt Realty Investments Inc. continue to hold full ownership of Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort in San Antonio.
Hyatt Hotels Corp., headquartered in Chicago, develops, owns, operates, manages, franchises, licenses and provides services to hotels, resorts, branded residences and vacation ownership properties. As of Sept. 30, the company’s worldwide portfolio consisted of 573 properties in 48 countries.
The stock price of Hyatt Hotels Corp. closed at $57.52 per share on Friday, Nov. 7, up from $48.06 per share at this time last year.
— John Nelson