By Mark McSherry
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Hotel operator Marriott International Inc
The hotel operator also said it may delay or cancel some projects in the current quarter, which may lead to write-offs.
"Our timeshare business has certainly been far more impacted by the current financial environment than our core lodging business," said Marriott Chairman and Chief Executive J.W. Marriott in a statement.
"Tight credit, soft consumer spending and a difficult securitization market have lowered our expectations for the fourth quarter and 2009," Marriott added.
Marriott, which typically manages hotels instead of owning them, reported third-quarter net income of $94 million compared with $131 million in the year-ago quarter, and earnings per share of 26 cents compared with 33 cents a year ago.
Third-quarter revenue rose 1 percent to $3 billion.
Marriott said it expects to earn between 44 cents and 50 cents a share in the fourth quarter. That is below analysts' average forecast of 62 cents, according to Reuters Estimates.
The company expects worldwide revenue per available room (RevPAR), a key industry measure, to decline 1 percent to 3 percent in the fourth quarter.
Excluding a $29 million charge, Marriott's third-quarter adjusted income from continuing operations rose 1 percent to $123 million, or 34 cents a share.
Shares of Marriott fell to $22.56 in early trading from a Wednesday close of $25.08. The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $45.10 to $22.12.
'UNUSUALLY CHALLENGING'
For all of 2008, Marriott now expects earnings of $1.62 to $1.68 a share, down from the $1.77 to $1.88 it predicted in July.
Marriott runs the Marriott, Courtyard, Ritz-Carlton and Fairfield Inn hotel brands, and stands behind only Intercontinental Hotels Group
Looking ahead, Marriott said it expects the 2009 business environment to remain "unusually challenging."
It said 2009 fee revenue could total $1.36 billion to $1.38 billion, a decline of 4 percent to 5 percent, and said that while it "cannot forecast results with certainty," 2009 earnings could total $1.48 to $1.60 a share.
At the end of the third quarter, Marriott's debt was $3.04 billion and its cash balance was $117 million, compared with $2.96 billion in debt and $332 million of cash at the end of 2007.
(Editing by Maureen Bavdek and Steve Orlofsky)
