LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA. — Noble Investment Group has agreed to buy a five-hotel portfolio in Orlando, Atlanta and New Jersey for $142 million. The portfolio includes a total of 1,396 rooms.
The acquisition includes three Marriott-managed properties in the Orlando suburb of Lake Buena Vista: the 312-room Courtyard Lake Buena Vista, the 388-room Fairfield Inn Lake Buena Vista and the 400-room Springhill Suites Lake Buena Vista. The remaining two properties, both operated by Remington Lodging, are the 146-room Courtyard Edison in Edison, N.J., and the 150-room Residence Inn Buckhead in Atlanta.
The hotels achieved an average RevPAR (revenue per available room) of $84, with a 79 percent occupancy rate and ADR (average daily rate) of $106 over a 12-month basis. The portfolio has an existing debt balance of about $98 million.
The seller, Ashford Hospitality Trust, expects the net proceeds from the disposition to be about $37 million after debt repayment and transaction costs. Ashford will use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, including net debt reduction, stock buybacks or the acquisition of other full-service hotels.
The transaction is scheduled to close during the current quarter.
“We are pleased to announce this sale as it provides a positive first step in our announced strategy of divesting of our non-core, select-service assets,” says Monty J. Bennett, Ashford’s chairman and CEO. “We will continue to pursue the sale of these hotels with a focus on maximizing value for our shareholders.”
Dallas-based Ashford Hospitality Trust (NYSE: AHT) is a publicly traded REIT focused on investing in upper-upscale, full-service hotels. The company’s stock price closed at $5.94 per share on Friday, April 15, down from $9.53 a year ago.
Atlanta-based Noble Investment Group’s private equity real estate funds seek investment opportunities where the company can enhance Class B assets in A-quality locations.
— Nellie Day