St. Joe Hospitality Hits Third-Quarter Record

The Tip Desk · November 3, 2026 · 4 min read

Hospitality revenue reached a third-quarter record of $66.0 million as total revenue slipped 3% to $156.2 million.

The St. Joe Company (JOE) reported hospitality revenue of $66.0 million in the third quarter of 2026, a 9% increase from $60.6 million a year earlier and a third-quarter record, as total revenue slipped 3% to $156.2 million from $161.1 million.

The Florida land and hospitality operator said the year-ago comparison was affected by the sale of the Watercrest joint venture senior living community property in the third quarter of 2025, which contributed $41.0 million of real estate revenue and $19.4 million of gross profit. President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Jorge Gonzalez said the 2026 quarter had organic growth despite that prior-year boost.

Hospitality gross margin improved to 37% from 35%. Watersound Club revenue, including Camp Creek Inn operations, rose 14% to $26.4 million, and hotel revenue increased 7% to $35.5 million. Club membership stood at 3,831 as of September 30, 2026, up 253 from a year earlier. The company owned 12 hotels with 1,298 operational rooms. Gonzalez said the highest guest-growth states were New York, South Carolina, Illinois and Michigan, and that through the end of September guests from all 50 states had stayed in the hotels.

Real estate revenue fell 9% to $76.1 million from $83.8 million. In September 2026 the company sold additional land to the Latitude Margaritaville Watersound joint venture for a contractual value of $50.4 million, recognizing $31.4 million of net present value as real estate revenue, with $9.6 million of cost and $21.8 million of operating income. The company said the $14,400 average per-unit land price represented a 44% increase versus the $10,000 average in the June 2020 initial transaction. The sale is estimated to add about 3,500 homesites, bringing the planned community to about 7,200 homes. Of the $50.4 million contractual value, $40.8 million is expected as pre-tax income over time.

Operating income increased 16% to $61.5 million from $52.9 million. Net income attributable to the company decreased 5% to $36.9 million, or $0.65 a share, from $38.7 million, or $0.67 a share. EBITDA decreased 7% to $64.1 million from $68.8 million. Equity in (loss) income from unconsolidated joint ventures swung to a loss of $8.2 million from income of $3.5 million, including $10.9 million of intra-entity profit elimination on the land sale.

Unconsolidated joint-venture revenue was $51.2 million versus $57.0 million. Latitude Margaritaville Watersound completed 67 home sales versus 82 and placed 106 homes under contract, a 49% increase in net new contracts versus 71. As of September 30, 2026, the community had 2,426 completed transactions and 222 homes under contract at an average sales price of about $635,000.

Leasing revenue decreased 16% to $14.1 million from $16.7 million, primarily due to the Watercrest sale and the July 2026 sale of the WindMark Beach Town Center. Leasable space was about 1,148,000 square feet, 97% leased, with 85,946 square feet under construction.

Residential volume totaled 80 homesites and 5 townhomes plus the $31.4 million land sale, versus 189 homesites and 8 townhomes a year earlier. Commercial, forestry and hospitality real estate sales totaled $22.5 million versus $44.1 million. Homesites under contract excluding Havenry and SouthWood were 1,048 with expected revenue of about $103.6 million; total homesites under contract were 3,021 including 1,326 in Havenry.

In the third quarter the company repurchased $27.2 million of stock, funded $22.8 million of capital expenditures, paid $9.1 million of dividends and repaid $8.8 million of debt. Cash and cash equivalents were $117.9 million as of September 30, 2026. The board declared a $0.18 quarterly dividend, a 13% increase from the $0.16 third-quarter dividend. Gonzalez said the company allocated 40% of third-quarter capital to stock repurchases, 34% to growth capital expenditures, 13% to debt repayment and 13% to dividends.