Executives from Wyndham Hotels & Resorts pointed to its third quarter earnings results as evidence that the operator can be successful as a standalone company rather than accept the acquisition proposal by Choice Hotels. Reiterating the board of director’s recent unanimous rejection of a stock-and-cash proposal by Choice, Geoff Ballotti, CEO of Wyndham, said the third quarter results “support that belief,” noting that the third quarter results were highlighted by continued growth in global RevPAR, ongoing domestic and international room growth and another 8% increase in hotel contracts awarded to franchisees, driving the development pipeline to a record 1,930 hotels.

Highlights of the earnings report included:

• Global RevPAR grew 3% compared with third quarter 2022 in constant currency.
• System-wide rooms grew 3% year-over-year.
• Development pipeline grew 4% sequentially and 12% year-over-year to a record 237,000 rooms.
• Signed over 230 contracts, an increase of 8% year-over-year, including 60 new construction projects for ECHO Suites Extended Stay by Wyndham.

Meanwhile, Choice called on Wyndham’s board to engage in good faith discussions to work out a deal for the proposed $90 per share acquisition. This call comes about a week after Wyndham rejected Choice’s $7.8 billion acquisition offer, calling it “underwhelming” and citing regulatory risks around a potential deal.

Patrick Pacious., CEO of Choice, said the company “appreciates the positive feedback we have received since first making our proposal public, particularly the support from both companies’ shareholders and franchisees.” They, and others, he said, “share our perspective that a transaction is pro-competitive, has a clear path to completion, and creates a combined company with a strong free cash flow profile to support both rapid deleveraging and investments for growth.”