Ashford Hospitality Tr Inc Stock Price, News & Analysis

Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) has announced significant compensation reductions as part of its 'GRO AHT' initiative, aimed at achieving $50 million in annual run-rate EBITDA improvement. The changes include:

• 50% reduction in board member compensation
• Board size reduced from nine to seven members
• Over 50% reduction in executive management and associate incentive awards

These compensation adjustments are expected to generate more than $11 million in incremental EBITDA. Combined with previously announced ancillary revenue initiatives, the company projects over $14 million in incremental EBITDA towards its $50 million target. The measures reflect Ashford Trust's commitment to financial discipline and operational efficiency in its upper-upscale, full-service hotel portfolio.

Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) has successfully extended its mortgage loan for the Hotel Indigo Atlanta Midtown, a 141-room property in Atlanta, Georgia. The loan, with a current balance of $12.3 million, has been extended from its original December 2024 maturity to February 2026, with an additional one-year extension option available until February 2027, subject to certain conditions.

The loan maintains its floating interest rate of SOFR + 2.85%. This extension represents a significant debt management milestone for the REIT, which specializes in investing predominantly in upper upscale, full-service hotels.

Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) has announced the complete payoff of its strategic financing, including the exit fee. The financing, which originated in early 2021, played a important role in the company's recovery from COVID-19 pandemic impacts.

The full repayment eliminates all corporate-level debt, strengthening the company's position alongside its recently announced 'GRO AHT' initiative. CEO Stephen Zsigray emphasized that this development will help maximize asset performance and increase shareholder value.

Ashford Hospitality Trust operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT) with a primary focus on investing in upper upscale, full-service hotels.

Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) has successfully closed a $580 million refinancing secured by 16 hotels. The new non-recourse financing replaces previous loans with a combined balance of $438.7 million and features a two-year term with three one-year extension options at SOFR + 4.37% interest rate.

The company utilized approximately $72 million of the excess proceeds to fully pay off its strategic financing, including the exit fee. The remaining excess proceeds will fund transaction costs and reserves for future capital expenditures. This refinancing addresses several pending loan maturities and eliminates all corporate-level debt.

Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) has announced the completion of four revenue-focused projects as part of its 'GRO AHT' strategic initiative, which aims to generate $50 million in EBITDA growth. The completed initiatives include menu engineering analysis, parking agreement modifications, gift shop refreshes, and historic preservation fee adjustments.

These four implementations are expected to contribute over $3 million in incremental hotel EBITDA annually. Early results have been promising, with December showing total revenue growth at nearly double the RevPAR increase of 4% compared to the previous year.

The initiatives are part of a broader strategy to maximize ancillary revenue and improve portfolio performance, focusing on optimizing Food & Beverage offerings, streamlining parking operations, revamping retail operations, and implementing strategic fees in applicable markets.

Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) has released its tax reporting information for 2024 preferred share distributions. The announcement covers Series D, F, G, H, I, J, and K preferred shares. The distributions are characterized by two main components: approximately 44.42% as Capital Gain Distribution and 55.58% as Return of Capital, with no Ordinary Taxable Dividend or Section 199A Dividend components.

The distributions vary by series, with Series D having the highest distribution at $2.1124 per share, followed by various Series K distributions ranging from $0.3416 to $2.0792 per share. Series F and G both distributed $1.8436 per share, while Series H and I each distributed $1.8750 per share. Series J distributed $2.0000 per share.

Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) has completed the sale of the Courtyard Boston Downtown for $123.0 million, equivalent to $390,500 per key for the 315-room property. The transaction contributes to deleveraging the company's BAML Highland Pool loan and reduces future capital expenditure requirements.

CEO Stephen Zsigray noted improved sentiment in transaction and financing markets, highlighting strong revenue growth in December as part of their GRO AHT initiative progress.

Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) has announced its preferred stock dividend declarations for Q1 2025. The company declared dividends for multiple series of preferred stock:

- Series D (8.45%): $0.5281 per share
- Series F & G (7.375%): $0.4609 per share
- Series H & I (7.50%): $0.46875 per share
- Series J: Monthly payments of $0.16667 per share
- Series K: Various monthly payments ranging from $0.17083 to $0.17500 per share depending on CUSIP

All dividends will be paid on April 15, 2025, to stockholders of record as of March 31, 2025, except for monthly dividends which have payments in February, March, and April. As of December 31, 2024, there were 6,799,638 Series J shares and 601,175 Series K shares outstanding.

Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) announced preliminary results for Q4 2024, reporting an Occupancy rate of approximately 66% with an Average Daily Rate of $190, leading to a RevPAR of $126. This represents a 3.0% increase in Comparable RevPAR compared to Q4 2023. Monthly breakdowns show a 4.5% increase for October, 0.4% for November, and 3.8% for December compared to the same months in 2023.

CEO Stephen Zsigray highlighted strong corporate and group demand and the success of the GRO AHT initiative, which contributed to a 4.4% rise in total hotel revenue for the quarter and a 6.9% increase in December. The company is also approaching the repayment of its corporate strategic financing.

Ashford Trust will close its offering of Series J and Series K non-traded preferred stock on March 31, 2025. Since the launch in 2022, the company raised approximately $185 million in gross proceeds. By December 31, 2024, there were 6,799,638 shares of Series J and 601,175 shares of Series K outstanding.