- Eliminates Near-Term Debt Maturities -
- Fully Undrawn Revolving Credit Line -
- Utilizes Existing Swap to Hedge the Facility -
- Closes First Tranche of Urban Select Service Disposition -
- Full Paydown of Junior Unsecured Notes -

PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 05, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hersha Hospitality Trust (NYSE: HT) (“Hersha” or the “Company”), owner of luxury and lifestyle hotels in coastal gateway and resort markets, today announced the Company closed on the refinancing of a $500 million Senior Secured Credit Facility (the “Credit Facility”) and the closing of the first tranche of six of the previously announced disposition of seven non-core Urban Select Service properties (the “USS Portfolio”).

Credit Facility

The $500 million Credit Facility consists of a $400 million Term Loan and an undrawn $100 million revolving credit line. The facilities will bear interest at 2.50% over the applicable adjusted term SOFR. The $500 million Credit Facility matures in August 2024 and has one 12-month extension option subject to certain conditions, which would result in an extended maturity of August 2025. The Company utilized an existing swap to hedge $300 million of the new term loan at a fixed rate of approximately 3.95%. Following the refinancings, 72% of the Company’s outstanding debt is either fixed or hedged through various derivative instruments. The Company has a weighted average interest rate of approximately 4.15% across all borrowings with a weighted average life-to-maturity of approximately 2.7 years.

“We are pleased with our lending group’s continued support and constructive view of Hersha’s growth initiatives and strategic direction. The refinancing of our existing credit facilities sustains the significant efforts undertaken to optimize our balance sheet and provides additional flexibility to execute our business plan. The Credit Facility refinancing in conjunction with the mortgage refinancings we completed in 2021 address our near-term maturities. Furthermore, the utilization of the existing swap on $300 million of the new term loan is forecasted to result in approximately $10 million of interest expense savings over the life of the new term loan.” stated Jay H. Shah, Hersha’s Chief Executive Officer.

The Term Loan refinancing was arranged by Citibank, N.A., Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, and Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company as Joint Lead Arrangers and Joint Book Running Managers, with Citibank, N.A. as Administrative Agent and Collateral Agent.  Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. and Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company acted as Co-Syndication Agents.   Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company, Fifth Third Bank and Wilmington Savings Fund Society, FSB acted as Co-Documentation Agents.  Other participating lenders include Goldman Sachs Bank USA, Raymond James Bank, N.A., The Huntington National Bank and The Provident Bank.

Urban Select Service Disposition

The Company had previously announced the pending sale of the USS Portfolio. On August 4, 2022 we closed on the sale of six of these USS Portfolio properties for gross proceeds of approximately $435.9 million.

The closing of the 145-room Courtyard in Sunnyvale, CA is expected to close at a later date due to the timing of the CMBS loan assumption process for this asset.

Hersha Hospitality Trust (HT) is a self-advised real estate investment trust in the hospitality sector, which owns and operates luxury and lifestyle hotels in coastal gateway and resort markets. The Company’s 30 hotels totaling 4,544 rooms are located in New York, Washington, DC, Boston, Philadelphia, South Florida and select markets on the West Coast. The Company’s common shares are traded on The New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “HT”. For more information on the Company, and the Company’s hotel portfolio, please visit the Company’s website at www.hersha.com

Forward Looking Statement 
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and, as such, may involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results or performance to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statement. These forward-looking statements may include statements related to, among other things, the Company’s access to capital on the terms and timing the Company expects and the Company’s expectations regarding future interest rates. Forward-looking statements are generally identifiable by use of forward-looking terminology such as “believe,” “could,” “outlook,” “consider,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “forecast,” “project,” “likely,” “estimate,” “plan,” “continue,” “intend,” “should,” “may” and words of similar import. Because these forward-looking statements relate to future events, the Company’s plans, strategies, prospects and future financial performance, and involve known and unknown risks that are difficult to predict and may be outside the Company’s control, they are not guarantees of future results and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statement. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. For a description of factors that may cause the Company’s actual results or performance to differ from its forward-looking statements, please review the information under the heading “Risk Factors” included in the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and other documents filed by the Company with the SEC from time to time. All information provided in this press release, unless otherwise stated, is as of August 4, 2022, and the Company undertakes no duty to update this information unless required by law.

Source: Hersha Hospitality Trust