DALLAS, May 4, 2017 — Ashford Hospitality Trust, Inc. (NYSE: AHT) ("Ashford Trust" or the "Company") today reported financial results and performance measures for the first quarter ended March 31, 2017. The performance measurements for Occupancy, Average Daily Rate (ADR), Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR), and Hotel EBITDA are comparable assuming each of the hotel properties in the Company's hotel portfolio as of March 31, 2017 were owned as of the beginning of each of the periods presented. Unless otherwise stated, all reported results compare the first quarter ended March 31, 2017, with the first quarter ended March 31, 2016 (see discussion below). The reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures is included in the financial tables accompanying this press release.
STRATEGIC OVERVIEW
- Opportunistic focus on upper-upscale, full-service hotels
- Targets moderate debt levels of approximately 55 – 60% net debt/gross assets
- Highly-aligned management team and advisory structure
- One of the highest long-term total shareholder returns in the industry
- Attractive dividend yield of approximately 7.5%
- Targets cash and cash equivalents at a level of 25 – 35% of total equity market capitalization for the purposes of:
- working capital needs at property and corporate levels
- hedging against a downturn in the economy or hotel fundamentals
- being prepared to pursue accretive investments or stock buybacks as those opportunities arise
FINANCIAL AND OPERATING HIGHLIGHTS
- Net loss attributable to common stockholders was $33.2 million or $0.35 per diluted share for the quarter
- Comparable RevPAR for all hotels increased 3.4% during the quarter
- Comparable RevPAR for all hotels not under renovation increased 4.5% during the quarter
- Comparable Hotel EBITDA Margin for all hotels not under renovation increased 91 basis points for the quarter
- Comparable Hotel EBITDA flow-through for all hotels not under renovation was 61% for the quarter
- Adjusted EBITDA was $100.8 million for the quarter
- Adjusted funds from operations (AFFO) was $0.32 per diluted share for the quarter
- The Company's common stock is currently trading at an approximate 7.5% dividend yield
- Appointed Douglas A. Kessler as President and Chief Executive Officer
- Capex invested in the quarter was $57 million
UPDATE ON PUBLIC OFFER TO ACQUIRE FELCOR LODGING TRUST On May 3, 2017, the Company announced that it is no longer seeking to merge with FelCor Lodging Trust Inc. (NYSE: FCH) ("FelCor"). In addition, the Company commented that it has withdrawn its preliminary proxy and proposed slate consisting of seven independent directors for election to FelCor's Board of Directors.
APPOINTMENT OF DOUGLAS A. KESSLER AS PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER On February 21, 2017, the Company announced that its Board of Directors had appointed Douglas A. Kessler as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Monty J. Bennett, the Company's previous Chief Executive Officer, remains Chairman of the Board of Ashford Trust. In order to provide greater focus to the Company, on April 27, 2017, Mr. Kessler resigned from the Board of Directors of Ashford Hospitality Prime (NYSE: AHP) ("Ashford Prime") and no longer is President of Ashford Prime.
CAPITAL STRUCTURE At March 31, 2017, the Company had total assets of $4.8 billion. As of March 31, 2017, the Company had $3.7 billion of mortgage debt. The Company's total combined debt had a blended average interest rate of 5.6%.
PORTFOLIO REVPAR As of March 31, 2017, the portfolio consisted of 121 properties. During the first quarter of 2017, 107 of the Company's hotels were not under renovation. The Company believes reporting its operating metrics for its hotels on a comparable total basis (all 121 hotels) and comparable not under renovation basis (107 hotels) is a measure that reflects a meaningful and focused comparison of the operating results in its portfolio. Details of each category are provided in the tables attached to this release.
- Comparable RevPAR increased 3.4% to $119.23 for all hotels on a 2.4% increase in ADR and a 1.0% increase in occupancy
- Comparable RevPAR increased 4.5% to $120.96 for hotels not under renovation on a 2.3% increase in ADR and a 2.1% increase in occupancy
HOTEL EBITDA MARGINS AND QUARTERLY SEASONALITY TRENDS The Company believes year-over-year Comparable Hotel EBITDA and Comparable Hotel EBITDA Margin comparisons are more meaningful to gauge the performance of the Company's hotels than sequential quarter-over-quarter comparisons. Given the substantial seasonality in the Company's portfolio and its active capital recycling, to help investors better understand this seasonality, the Company provides quarterly detail on its Comparable Hotel EBITDA and Comparable Hotel EBITDA Margin for the current and certain prior-year periods based upon the number of hotels in the Company's portfolio as of the end of the current period. As the Company's portfolio mix changes from time to time so will the seasonality for Comparable Hotel EBITDA and Comparable Hotel EBITDA Margin. The details of the quarterly calculations for the previous four quarters for the 121 hotels are provided in the table attached to this release.
To view full financial release and corresponding tables please click the PDF icon or visit: http://www.ahtreit.com/resourcefiles/pdf/aht-5-4-17.pdf
