Barry English, founder of data centre builder Winthrop Technologies, has emerged as a shareholder in Dalata Hotels Group, as a host of US bidders circle the company behind the Clayton and Maldron hotel brands.
Mr English’s family investment vehicle, Penman Securities Trading, has built up a 1.12 per cent stake in Dalata, according to stock exchange filings.
Mr English owns the five-star Mount Juliet Estate hotel and golf resort in Kilkenny, acquired late last year, and Johnstown Estate Hotel and Trim Castle Hotel, both in Co Meath. However, the recent move to increase its shares in Dalata – tipping it over the 1 per cent disclosable threshold for a listed company in a sale process – is seen as a value play as the company is in the middle of a sales process, rather than a signal of bid interest.
“As owners of hotel assets we recognise the high quality of Dalata’s portfolio and the material discount to fair value the equity is trading at,” a spokesman for Penman said in response to questions from The Irish Times.
The board of Dalata, which floated on the stock market in 2014, hired investment bank Rothschild to carry out a strategic review of the business in March, following a sustained period of underperformance by the stock. While the shares have subsequently rallied, Dalata’s market capitalisation remains at a 15 per cent discount to the €1.42 billion net value the company puts on its assets.
US investment firms Starwood Capital, Davidson Kempner, TPG, Apollo, Bain and KSL are among parties that recently submitted bid proposals for Dalata, according to property news services Green Street. Sources have independently confirmed that Starwood, Davidson Kempner, Apollo and Bain are in the mix. An affiliate of Starwood already owns 2.7 per cent of Dalata. A deadline for second-round bids has been set for early next month.
A spokesman for Dalata, which is led by chief executive Dermot Crowley, declined to comment on the current state of the process.
Dalata is said to be planning to bring the process to a conclusion before the end of the summer, with or without a sale. Davy and Berenberg are also advising Dalata.
Dalata’s three largest shareholders, London-based hedge fund Helikon Investments, Saudi conglomerate Zahid Group and Norwegian property investor Eiendomsspar, have each added marginally to their stakes in the Dublin-listed company since the ‘for sale’ sign was raised. Helikon own owns 17.4 per cent, Zahid Group, 10.6 per cent, and Eiendomsspar, 8.76 per cent.
Mr English set up Penman Securities Trading eight years ago, largely funded by dividends from Winthrop. US private equity group Blackstone’s purchased a 50.7 per cent stake in Winthrop last year in a deal that valued the business at about €800 million. The Irish engineer owned 65 per cent of Winthrop before that deal. Penman has only one other publicly acknowledged holding in an Irish publicly quoted company: a small position in Glanbia.
Dalata has a portfolio of 55 hotels, primarily comprising a mix of owned and leased hotels operating through its two main brands, Clayton and Maldron hotels.
Since 2021, the company has grown its portfolio by 35 per cent to 11,990 rooms, with a further 1,624 rooms in the pipeline. It aims to have 21,000 rooms in operation or under construction by 2030.
Chairman John Hennessy said in March that the board was “unanimous in the view that the key to achieving that vision is the availability of capital and that the share price does not reflect the underlying value of the company”.
Dalata reported revenue of €652.2 million and basic earnings per share of 35.5 cents last year.
