Marriott International soon will purchase Delta Hotels and Resorts for about $135 million.
On Tuesday, Marriott announced it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire the Toronto-based brand and its 38 hotels, with 10,000 rooms located across 30 cities in Canada. The move will increase Marriott's reach to more than 120 hotels and 27,000 rooms in Canada, making it that country's largest full-service hotel company.
"With this acquisition, we are continuing our focus on building our brand portfolio and growing in attractive regions outside the U.S.," said Arne Sorenson, president and CEO of Marriott International. "Combining the strong Delta brand with Marriott's hotel development expertise will accelerate growth of the brand in Canada and in other markets around the world."
The agreement is in line with Marriott International's announcement early last week that it expects its portfolio of hotels that are either open or under development to surpass 1 million rooms by the end of 2015.
"Canada represents the largest international source market for our hotels in the United States, and the integration of Delta into Marriott's 4,100-plus hotel global portfolio will provide new travel opportunities for both Delta and Marriott customers," said David Grissen, group president overseeing the Americas for Marriott International.
Marriott would acquire the Delta brand from Delta Hotels Limited Partnership, a subsidiary of British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (bcIMC). Fairmont Hotels and Resorts previously owned Delta from 1998 to 2007.
Delta Hotels and Resorts would not comment on the details of the transaction between bcIMC and Marriott International.
The Delta deal is one of multiple large-scale acquisitions Marriott International has made in recent years. In April 2014, Marriott acquired South Africa-based Protea Hospitality Group for $186 million, making Marriott International the largest hotel company in Africa. In October 2012, Marriott finalized an acquisition of the Gaylord hotels brand and hotel management company from Ryman Hospitality Properties, formerly Gaylord Entertainment, for $210 million.
According to Barclays Capital, Marriott spends approximately $600 million on contract acquisition and capital expenditures annually. In 2014, Marriott signed agreements to add more than 650 hotels and 100,000 rooms to its worldwide system during the coming years.