Oakmount, the development company headed up by Paddy McKillen jnr and Matt Ryan, is selling a portfolio of five of its foremost hotels.
The confidential sale and managed-back process for the Dean Dublin, the Mayson, the Devlin, the Dean Cork and the Dean Galway has been ascribed the code name “Project Dagda” and is being handled by Eastdil Secured. The proposed disposal of the hotel properties carries a value estimated by market sources at €250 million.
The Irish Times understands the proposed sale has attracted significant interest from investors and that a number of these parties have conducted tours and inspections of the hotel properties over recent weeks.
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The disposal decision comes just over three years after Mr McKillen and Mr Ryan abandoned a plan to raise up to €50 million through the sale of a 45 per cent stake in their Press Up Entertainment Group business to investors.
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While that sale, which was being handled by stockbroker Goodbody, saw a number of UK-based parties progress to a second round of bidding for the pub, restaurant and cinema chain shareholding, the Press Up founders pulled back after deciding that their vision for the company was not shared by their prospective suitors.
The intended share sale had related to Press Up’s trading operations only and did not involve any of the Oakmount-owned properties in which its bars, restaurants and hotels operate. Press Up’s portfolio includes the Stella Theatre, Angelina’s, Captain Americas, and Elephant & Castle.
Press Up had previously engaged Goodbody in early 2018 to assess its funding options, including an initial public offering (IPO) of shares on the stock market, with a view to raising as much as €60 million. The proposed IPO did not proceed.
Should a buyer emerge for Oakmount’s Project Dagda hotel portfolio, the Press Up Hospitality group would continue to manage each venue. Commenting on this proposed arrangement in a “confidential offering memorandum” circulated to prospective investors, Eastdil Secured said: “An incoming buyer will benefit from the Press Up platform’s unique market and individual property knowledge, which will continue to drive exceptional trading performances at robust margins.”
In a detailed overview of the five hotels’ respective performances, Eastdil notes in its memorandum that the Dean Hotel in Dublin was on course to record total revenues of just under €11.5 million in 2022, while it projected revenues of €15.509 million and €16.652 million for 2023 and 2024. The Mayson Hotel was on course to record revenues of €13.277 million in 2022 according to the memorandum, while the projected income figures for 2023 and 2024 are €13.986 million and €14.478 million respectively. The Devlin Hotel’s estimated revenues for 2022, 2023 and 2024 are given as €7.163 million, €7.629 million and €7.886 million each. The Dean Hotel in Cork is ascribed estimated revenues of €11.225 million, €11.826 million and €12.268 million respectively for 2022, 2023 and 2024 while estimates for the Dean Hotel in Galway are €6.419 million, €11.327 million and €11.758 million for the same period.
A spokeswoman for Oakmount declined to comment on the matter when contacted by The Irish Times.
