Red Lion Hotels Corp., of Spokane, today reported a third-quarter net loss of $906,000, or five cents a share, down from a loss of $122,000, or 1 cent a share, in the 2011 third quarter.
Through the first nine months of this year, the company has reported losses of a little over $11 million, or 57 cents a share, down from net income of $13.9 million, or 72 cents a share, in the first three quarters of last year.
In the latest quarter, despite the loss, it reported that total revenue from continuing operations grew to $45.4 million, up from $44.5 million in the year-earlier quarter. Meanwhile, it said, hotel revenue increased by $1.5 million on a comparable basis, and franchise revenue increased by $300,000. Partly offsetting those increases, though, was a slight decline in entertainment and other revenues.
Also on the positive side, Red Lion said its revenue per available room, known as RevPAR and regarded in the hospitality industry as a yardstick for performance, increased 4.6 percent year over year for comparable owned and leased hotels.
"We are pleased to report another quarter of favorable RevPAR growth," said Jon E. Eliassen, Red Lion's president and CEO, in a press release announcing the company's quarterly results.
"We also continue to make excellent progress on selling properties, franchising new hotels, and reducing debt," Eliassen said, adding, "Since June 30, we have sold three hotels and all of the buyers have signed franchise agreements for either the purchased property or a different location. Proceeds from our property sales have been used to pay down $17.7 million in debt."