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RLJ Lodging Trust Successfully Secures Financial Covenant Waivers for Credit Agreements and Provides Update on Hotel Re-openings

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Business News first on FIR:

BETHESDA, Md.–()–RLJ Lodging Trust (the “Company”) (NYSE: RLJ) today announced that it has amended its $1.8 billion Senior Unsecured Credit Facilities comprising a $600 million revolving credit facility (“Revolving Credit Facility”) and $1,175 million in term loans.

“We are pleased with the amendments to our credit facility, which in addition to providing relief from covenant tests for an extended period of time, also provide us the flexibility on multiple fronts to continue to pursue our strategic initiatives,” commented Leslie D. Hale, President and Chief Executive Officer. “We thank our lending partners for their support as we continue to navigate these uncertain times and truly value these strong, long-term relationships. Additionally, we are pleased with the progress we are making towards re-opening hotels in a socially and financially responsible manner.”

Amended Credit Facility Terms

Key terms of the Amended Credit Facilities include the following:

– Waiver of quarterly financial covenants beginning in the second quarter of 2020 through the first quarter of 2021, unless terminated earlier by the Company.

– After the end of the covenant relief period, certain covenant calculations are modified to make compliance easier through the second quarter of 2022.

– Imposition of certain restrictions during the covenant relief period including restrictions on share repurchases, dividends and distribution payments (with certain exceptions, including for the payment of a cash dividend of $0.01 per common share, the payment of a cash dividend of $0.4875 per share on the Company’s Series A Cumulative Convertible Preferred Shares and other payments for purposes of maintaining the Company’s REIT status).

– Addition of limitations on the incurrence of additional indebtedness, asset sales, investments and discretionary capital expenditures, in each case subject to various exceptions and requiring certain mandatory repayments.

– The Company is permitted to make investments during the covenant relief period, including $200 million of hotel acquisitions, depending on the outstanding balance on the Revolving Credit Facility, and approximately $260 million of capital expenditures.

Update on Hotel Re-openings

Concurrent with its first quarter earnings release, the Company had announced suspension of operations at 57 hotels in response to state mandated stay-in-place orders and the significant reduction in demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As stay-in-place restrictions are lifted, the Company has developed a framework to open hotels in a socially and financially responsible way. The Company expects that its primarily transient oriented, select-service and extended stay hotels located in drive-to and leisure markets will re-open sooner than traditional full-service hotels. The Company has recently reopened 19 hotels and continues to evaluate reopening additional hotels based on market conditions. All open hotels will continue to operate under aggressive operating cost containment plans, including significantly reduced staffing, elimination of non-essential amenities and services, and the closure of several floors and most food and beverage outlets.

About Us

RLJ Lodging Trust is a self-advised, publicly traded real estate investment trust that owns primarily premium-branded, high-margin, focused-service and compact full-service hotels. The Company’s portfolio consists of 103 hotels with approximately 22,570 rooms, located in 23 states and the District of Columbia and an ownership interest in one unconsolidated hotel with 171 rooms.

Forward Looking Statements

The following information contains certain statements, other than purely historical information, including estimates, projections, statements relating to the Company’s business plans, objectives and expected operating results, measures being taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business, and the assumptions upon which those statements are based, that are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the use of the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “will continue,” “intend,” “should,” or similar expressions. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, beliefs and expectations, such forward-looking statements are not predictions of future events or guarantees of future performance and the Company’s actual results could differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Some factors that might cause such a difference include the following: the current global economic uncertainty and a worsening of global economic conditions or low levels of economic growth; the duration and scope of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the demand for travel and on levels of consumer confidence; actions governments, businesses and individuals take in response to the pandemic, including limiting or banning travel; the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and actions taken in response to the pandemic on global and regional economies, travel, and economic activity; the pace of recovery when the COVID-19 pandemic subsides; the effects of steps we and our third party management partners take to reduce operating costs; increased direct competition, changes in government regulations or accounting rules; changes in local, national and global real estate conditions; declines in the lodging industry, including as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic; seasonality of the lodging industry; risks related to natural disasters, such as earthquakes and hurricanes; hostilities, including future terrorist attacks or fear of hostilities that affect travel; the Company’s ability to obtain lines of credit or permanent financing on satisfactory terms; changes in interest rates; access to capital through offerings of the Company’s common and preferred shares of beneficial interest, or debt; the Company’s ability to identify suitable acquisitions; the Company’s ability to close on identified acquisitions and integrate those businesses; and inaccuracies of the Company’s accounting estimates. Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The Company cautions investors not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements and urge investors to carefully review the disclosures the Company makes concerning risks and uncertainties in the sections entitled “Risk Factors,” “Forward-Looking Statements,” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in the Company’s Annual Report, as well as risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed in other documents filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

For additional information or to receive press releases via email, please visit our website: http://www.rljlodgingtrust.com

A Message From Oscar Munoz and Scott Kirby

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United Airlines News Releases first on FIR:

CHICAGO, March 27, 2020 /FIR — Oscar Munoz, Chief Executive Officer, and J. Scott Kirby, President, today issued the following message to nearly 100,000 United Airlines (NASDAQ: UAL) employees:

To our United Family:

Today, Congress passed an emergency COVID-19 response bill that includes significant financial backing for the airline industry. This decisive, bipartisan action by our elected leaders in Washington, D.C. is good news for our country, our economy, our health care system, our industry, and importantly our family here at United Airlines.

The impact of COVID-19 on demand for air travel has been dramatic and unprecedented – far worse than even the aftermath of 9/11. This federal assistance buys us time to adapt to this new environment and assess how long it will take for our economy to begin to recover. But, what this means for you right now is that *United will not conduct involuntary furloughs or pay cuts in the U.S. before September 30th*.

Everyone had a role in this effort and, as you always do, you came through for us. While Oscar, Scott, our union leaders and our government affairs and regulatory teams worked around-the-clock, on behalf of all of you, to educate leaders in the federal government about the unique and dramatic impact the COVID-19 outbreak has had on United Airlines, our United Airlines family sprang into action.

Your participation in the last few days was critical. More than 30,000 of you sent more than 100,000 messages to your representatives in Congress and another 5,000 signed a petition for international employees and retirees. Our union leaders also activated their organizations to amplify the message for the good of our company. The speed at which everyone stepped up and acted was remarkable and shows that when we come together, we can accomplish incredible things for our company. Thank you for what you did to help in getting this legislation passed.

We also wanted to pause and thank you for performing at your best to take care of our customers and each other through all of this uncertainty. Our operations teams have literally been on the front lines of this crisis, working directly with our customers and helping them navigate the ever-changing series of schedule adjustments, government mandates and restrictions on places prohibiting travel.

Specifically, our pilots, flight attendants, airport agents, ramp service, technicians and catering teams are showing up at airports all across the country, every day, helping customers and one another, and looking for opportunities to do the right thing. But they’re not the only ones who continue to go the extra mile in these trying times – it should be no surprise that our contact center employees have been particularly tested, handling nearly one million calls in the last two weeks alone. Through it all, they are doing what they do best: being there for our customers and remaining upbeat and positive.

Across the board, we’ve never been prouder of this team and what we stand for but unfortunately our work is just beginning. As we look forward, the lessons of past disruptions like 9/11 tell us that we can’t pretend that we are out of the woods. Things are very different today than they were just four weeks ago.

The global economy has taken a big hit, and we don’t expect travel demand to snap back for some time. Our April schedule is already cut by more than 60% and we expect our load factors to fall into the teens or single digits even with 60% less capacity. We are currently planning to make even deeper cuts in May and June.

And, based on how doctors expect the virus to spread and how economists expect the global economy to react, we expect demand to remain suppressed for months after that, possibly into next year. We will continue to plan for the worst and hope for a faster recovery but no matter what happens, taking care of each of our people will remain our number one priority. That means being honest, fair and upfront with you: if the recovery is as slow as we fear, it means our airline and our workforce will have to be smaller than it is today.

Amid these questions about United’s future and this disruption to our daily routines, we feel it’s more important than ever to connect with you. Social distancing makes that challenging, of course, but our team has found a way for us to use technology to host a “virtual town hall” next Thursday, April 2nd, where we can talk more about these challenges and answer your questions. We’ll soon have more details on timing and how you can participate. We hope you will.

We remain in the business of serving people even when there are fewer people traveling. And even in this time of uncertainty, some things are constant: we still have the best airline professionals in the world; we still put our customers at the center of everything we do; we still operate in the best hubs; and we still have a deep-seated culture of caring for one another.

So when travel demand returns – and it will return – we will bounce back and be ready to accelerate towards our goal of becoming the best airline in the history of aviation.

Thank you for all you do.

Oscar and Scott

About United

United’s shared purpose is “Connecting People. Uniting the World.” We are more focused than ever on our commitment to customers through a series of innovations and improvements designed to help build a great experience: Every customer. Every flight. Every day. Together, United and United Express operate approximately 4,900 flights a day to 362 airports across six continents. In 2019, United and United Express operated more than 1.7 million flights carrying more than 162 million customers. United is proud to have the world’s most comprehensive route network, including U.S. mainland hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, New York/Newark, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. United operates 791 mainline aircraft and the airline’s United Express partners operate 581 regional aircraft. United is a founding member of Star Alliance, which provides service to 195 countries via 26 member airlines. For more information, visit united.com, follow @United on Twitter and Instagram or connect on Facebook. The common stock of United’s parent, United Airlines Holdings, Inc., is traded on the Nasdaq under the symbol “UAL”.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Certain statements in this release are forward-looking and thus reflect the Company’s current expectations and beliefs with respect to certain current and future events and anticipated financial and operating performance. Such forward-looking statements are and will be subject to many risks and uncertainties relating to the Company’s operations and business environment that may cause actual results to differ materially from any future results expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Words such as “expects,” “will,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “indicates,” “remains,” “believes,” “estimates,” “forecast,” “guidance,” “outlook,” “goals,” “targets” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Additionally, forward-looking statements include statements that do not relate solely to historical facts, such as statements which identify uncertainties or trends, discuss the possible future effects of current known trends or uncertainties, or which indicate that the future effects of known trends or uncertainties cannot be predicted, guaranteed or assured. All forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to the Company on the date of this release. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

The Company’s actual results could differ materially from these forward-looking statements due to numerous factors including, without limitation, the following: the Company’s ability to execute its strategic operating plan, including its growth, revenue-generating and cost-control initiatives; general economic conditions (including interest rates, foreign currency exchange rates, investment or credit market conditions, crude oil prices, costs of aircraft fuel and energy refining capacity in relevant markets); risks of doing business globally, including instability and political developments that may impact its operations in certain countries; demand for travel and the impact that global economic and political conditions have on customer travel patterns; the Company’s capacity decisions and the capacity decisions of its competitors; competitive pressures on pricing and on demand; changes in aircraft fuel prices; disruptions in the Company’s supply of aircraft fuel; the Company’s ability to cost-effectively hedge against increases in the price of aircraft fuel, if it decides to do so; the effects of any technology failures, cybersecurity or significant data breaches; disruptions to services provided by third-party service providers; potential reputational or other impact from adverse events involving the Company’s aircraft or operations, the aircraft or operations of its regional carriers or its code share partners or the aircraft or operations of another airline; the Company’s ability to attract and retain customers; the effects of any terrorist attacks, international hostilities or other security events, or the fear of such events; the mandatory grounding of aircraft in the Company’s fleet; disruptions to the Company’s regional network; the impact of regulatory, investigative and legal proceedings and legal compliance risks; the success of the Company’s investments in other airlines, including in other parts of the world; industry consolidation or changes in airline alliances; the ability of other air carriers with whom the Company has alliances or partnerships to provide the services contemplated by the respective arrangements with such carriers; costs associated with any modification or termination of the Company’s aircraft orders; disruptions in the availability of aircraft, parts or support from its suppliers; the Company’s ability to maintain satisfactory labor relations and the results of any collective bargaining agreement process with its union groups; any disruptions to operations due to any potential actions by the Company’s labor groups; labor costs; the existing outbreak of coronavirus and the outbreak of any other disease or similar public health threat that affects travel demand or travel behavior; the impact of any management changes; extended interruptions or disruptions in service at major airports where the Company operates; U.S. or foreign governmental legislation, regulation and other actions (including Open Skies agreements, environmental regulations and the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union); the seasonality of the airline industry; weather conditions; the costs and availability of aviation and other insurance; the costs and availability of financing; the Company’s ability to maintain adequate liquidity; the Company’s ability to comply with the terms of its various financing arrangements; the Company’s ability to realize the full value of its intangible assets and long-lived assets; any impact to the Company’s reputation or brand image and other risks and uncertainties set forth under Part I, Item 1A., “Risk Factors,” of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 as well as other risks and uncertainties set forth from time to time in the reports it files with the SEC.

SOURCE United Airlines

For further information: United Airlines Worldwide Media Relations, 872-825-8640, media.relations@united.com

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Despegar.com Provides Business Update

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Business News first on FIR:

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS–()–Despegar.com, Corp. (NYSE: DESP), (“Despegar” or the “Company”) the leading online travel company in Latin America, today provided a further update on the operational and financial measures being taken in connection with the impact of COVID-19 which has affected travel and tourism worldwide.

These are unprecedented times that are impacting all countries and companies. Despegar believes it has a solid financial position to support the Company over the coming quarters. As of December 31, 2019, the Company had US$313 million in cash and US$180 million in credit card receivables.

Despegar maintains a strong and flexible balance sheet, free of any long term debt and only a minimal amount of short term debt to fund working capital. Importantly, Despegar does not bear customer credit risk and has no relevant advances to suppliers outstanding.

In the current environment, Despegar is focusing equally on three key pillars: 1) taking care of the health and safety of its employees, 2) supporting its customers’ needs in times of disruption, and 3) ensuring sustainability and success of the Company’s long term strategy. As the situation continues to evolve worldwide, Despegar is providing further information as discussed in more detail below.

Taking Care of Employees

The health and safety of our employees is of the utmost importance to us. Despegar’s employees have been working remotely since March 13, 2020, even before mandatory quarantines were imposed. This is part of a wider set of employee-related measures undertaken in response to the spread of COVID-19. The Company’s leading-edge technology has allowed it to effectively carry out all business operations remotely.

Supporting Our Customers

Given the unprecedented global travel situation, Despegar is assisting its customers with changes to their travel arrangements through the implementation of the following initiatives:

  • Reallocation of employees to assist with customer care, doubling the number of representatives handling inbound calls
  • Increased automation capabilities of digital channels to assist a larger volume of reschedulings
  • Providing customers with flexible conditions to defer their travel plans primarily through the issuance of vouchers.

Ensuring Sustainability of the Company

As the largest online travel agency in Latin America, Despegar benefits from scale and operates the lowest cost business model in the region, based on publicly available information.

As of the end of last year, Despegar began to further streamline operations and outsourced its fulfillment centers as disclosed in its 4Q’19 earnings call. These initiatives have achieved an annualized cost reduction of approximately $16 million, or 7% of its FY19 Structural Costs(1), following a workforce reduction of 568 full time employees.

Additionally, since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, Despegar has been significantly reducing all non-critical spend and re-adjusting Structural Costs to deliver an additional 35% YoY savings by the end of 3Q’20 and, preserve cash. These cost containment/ cash preservation measures include, among others:

  • Reducing salaries of the Executive Committee, Board Directors, and senior management by 50% and middle management by 25% throughout 2Q’20. Eliminating 1H20 bonuses to all employees
  • Implementing a hiring freeze and limiting inflation salary increases
  • Reducing working hours and implementing unpaid leave in certain locations
  • Accelerating the capture of synergies from the acquisitions of Viajes Falabella
  • Renegotiating supplier payment terms and conditions
  • Reviewing all contracts and commitments
  • Deferring non-critical capital expenditures

Combined, the measures taken in 4Q19 and those being taken in response to Covid-19 are expected to result in annualized cost savings of approximately US$90 million, representing a total 40%(2) YoY reduction in Structural Costs by the end of 3Q’20. These initiatives will also contribute to increase the flexibility of the Company’s cost structure with fixed costs as of 3Q’20 representing approximately 1/3 of total costs(2).

In addition, in terms of variable costs, the Company has significantly reduced marketing investments, including performance marketing and telesales, which are anticipated to result in additional savings of approximately $35 million in 2Q’20(3)

The foregoing expected savings are management estimations based on current information and may change, potentially materially, including as a result of the rapidly evolving impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Company expects to release first quarter 2020 earnings in May and anticipates providing additional updates at that time.

  1. Structural Costs: includes fulfillment center fees (included in cost of revenues), plus fixed Marketing Costs (i.e., personnel), SG&A and Technology and Content. Excluding stock based compensation, D&A and capitalized IT.
  2. Based on FY19 level of activity.
  3. Cost of Revenue -excluding Fulfillment Centers are also variable costs and thus tied to the level of business activity.

About Despegar.com

About Despegar.com Despegar is the leading online travel company in Latin America. With over two decades of business experience and operating in 20 countries in the region, Despegar accompanies Latin American travelers from the moment they dream of taking a trip until they share their memories of that trip. Thanks to the strong commitment to technological development and customer service, Despegar offers a customized experience to more than 18 million customers. Despegar’s websites and leading mobile apps, offer products from over 270 airlines, more than 512,000 accommodation options, as well as more than 1,190 car rental agencies and approximately 326 destination services suppliers with more than 6,000 activities throughout Latin America. The Company owns and operates two well-recognized brands, Despegar, its global brand, and Decolar, its Brazilian brand. Despegar is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: DESP). For more information, please visit www.despegar.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes forward-looking statements. We base these forward-looking statements on our current beliefs, expectations and projections about future events and financial trends affecting our business and our market. These statements are intended to qualify for the safe harbors from liability provided by Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Many important factors could cause our actual results to differ substantially from those anticipated in our forward-looking statements. In particular, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global economic conditions and the travel industry, as well as on the business and results of operations of the Company in particular, is expected to be material, and, as conditions are changing rapidly, is difficult to predict. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update publicly or to revise any forward looking statements.

Bluegreen Vacations Corporation Provides Business Update

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Business News first on FIR:

BOCA RATON, Fla.–()–Bluegreen Vacations Corporation (NYSE: BXG) (“Bluegreen” or the “Company”) announced today that as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, including current and anticipated travel restrictions and restrictions on business operations, the Company has temporarily closed until further notice all of its VOI sales centers; its retail marketing operations at Bass Pro Shops; Cabela’s stores and outlet malls; and its Choice Hotels call transfer program. Several of the Company’s resorts have been or are expected to be closed based on various governmental mandates and advisories.

Alan B. Levan, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented event in the United States and globally, and the domino effect has directly impacted Bluegreen’s sales and operations. We remain committed to our owners and the future of Bluegreen and are taking these difficult necessary measures, which will adversely impact our associates and our business, only after careful consideration of the challenges we face and with a view to protecting the long-term best interests of our associates, owners and our Company. We look forward to the end of this global crisis and the reestablishment of our full business operations.”

The Company started the year off strong, with system-side sales of vacation ownership interests up 16.5% through February 29, 2020. Since then, the Company has seen significant declines in occupancy, sales tours, and system-side sales of vacation ownership interest due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, in addition to the aforementioned actions, the Company has taken a number of additional actions including a reduction in force, temporary furloughs and reduced work hours.

Balance Sheet and Liquidity

As a precautionary measure aimed towards ensuring adequate liquidity for a sustained period, the Company drew down $60 million under its $125 million Revolving Credit Facility on March 19, 2020 and pledged/sold receivables under its various receivable-backed debt/purchase facilities to increase its cash position, bringing the Company’s unrestricted cash balance as of March 30, 2020 to approximately $240 million. In addition, the Company has only $20.3 million of debt maturities due during 2020.

Forward-Looking Statements:
 Certain statements in this press release are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations of management and can be identified by the use of words such as “believe,” “may,” “could,” “should,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “estimates,” “expects,” and other words and phrases of similar impact. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond our control, that may cause actual results or performance to differ from those set forth or implied in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks relating to the rapidly changing effects of the COVID-19 outbreak, including reduced demand for vacation ownership products and services, travel and business restrictions, volatility in the international and national economy and credit markets, worker absenteeism, quarantines and other health-related restrictions; the length and severity of the COVID-19 outbreak and our ability to successfully resume full business operations thereafter; governmental and agency orders, mandates and guidance in response to the COVID-19 outbreak; the pace of recovery following the COVID-19 outbreak; competitive conditions; our liquidity and the availability of capital; our ability to successfully implement our strategic plans and initiatives to navigate the COVID-19 outbreak; risks that our current or future marketing alliances may not be available to us in the future; risks that default rates may increase and exceed the Company’s expectations; risks related to our indebtedness, including the potential for accelerated maturities and debt covenant violations; the risk of heightened litigation as a result of actions taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic; the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on our shareholder dividend policy, including that dividends may not be paid at the current rate or at all; and the additional risks and uncertainties described in Bluegreen’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, those described in the “Risk Factors” section of Bluegreen’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, which was filed on March 12, 2020. Bluegreen cautions that the foregoing factors are not exclusive. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statement, which speaks only as of the date made. Bluegreen does not undertake, and specifically disclaims any obligation, to update or supplement any forward-looking statements.

About Bluegreen Vacations Corporation:
 Bluegreen Vacations Corporation (NYSE: BXG) is a leading vacation ownership company that markets and sells vacation ownership interests (“VOIs”) and manages resorts in top leisure and urban destinations. The Bluegreen Vacation Club is a flexible, points-based, deeded vacation ownership plan with approximately 220,000 owners, 68 Club and Club Associate Resorts and access to more than 11,350 other hotels and resorts through partnerships and exchange networks as of December 31, 2019. Bluegreen Vacations also offers a portfolio of fee-based resort management, financial, and sales and marketing services, to or on behalf of third parties. Bluegreen is more than 90% owned by BBX Capital Corporation (NYSE: BBX) (OTCQX: BBXTB), a diversified holding company. For further information, visit www.BluegreenVacations.com.

About BBX Capital Corporation:
 BBX Capital Corporation (NYSE: BBX) (OTCQX: BBXTB), is a Florida-based diversified holding company whose activities include its more than 90% ownership interest in Bluegreen Vacations Corporation (NYSE: BXG) as well as its real estate and middle market divisions. For additional information, please visit www.BBXCapital.com.

Colony Capital Names Severin White as Head of Public Investor Relations

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Business News first on FIR:

LOS ANGELES–()–Colony Capital, Inc. (NYSE: CLNY) (“Colony” or the “Company”) today announced the appointment of Severin White as Managing Director, Head of Public Investor Relations, effective immediately.

As Head of Public Investor Relations, Mr. White will, among other things, manage and cultivate relationships with the investment community, oversee the Company’s financial communications and shareholder outreach, and act as a liaison between the management team, Board of Directors and Colony Capital’s ownership base. He will also support the Colony senior leadership team, as the Company pivots its focus to digital infrastructure and real estate.

“With more than 25 years of investment management experience in both private equity and public markets, Severin brings invaluable expertise and leadership to our investor relations program,” said Marc Ganzi, Colony Capital’s CEO-elect. “Severin will play an important role in building investor engagement and articulating the benefits of our new strategic direction focused on digital infrastructure and real estate.”

Mr. White said, “Colony Capital is a dynamic business with compelling opportunities ahead. I am excited to join the Company at such an important time in its history and I look forward to communicating Colony’s bright prospects for growth and value creation to our shareholders and the broader investment community.”

About Severin White

Over the course of his career, Mr. White has held senior operational and finance positions at several capital management and investment firms. He joins Colony Capital from Niagara Share LLC, a financial advisory practice serving family office investors focused on both public and private investments. Mr. White founded and served as managing member of Niagara Share LLC.

Prior to founding Niagara Share, he served for 10 years as a key member of the investment team managed by New Vernon Capital and subsequently Columbia Pacific Advisors. Earlier in his career, Mr. White served as Senior Vice President, Business Development at Smithsonian Business Ventures, where he spearheaded the negotiation and structuring of the Smithsonian Channel, a joint venture television network between the Smithsonian Institution and CBS/Showtime. Mr. White began his career at Bastion Capital, a Los Angeles‐based middle market private equity buyout fund.

Mr. White holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, with concentrations in Finance and Entrepreneurial Management.

About Colony Capital

Colony Capital, Inc. (NYSE:CLNY) is a global investment firm with a focus on building the leading digital real estate provider and funding source for the occupancy, infrastructure, equity and credit needs of the world’s mobile communications and data-driven companies. The Company has assets under management of approximately $49 billion composed of $36 billion of capital managed on behalf of third party institutional and retail investors and $13 billion of investment interests on its own balance sheet. The Company’s owns and operates an investment management business with $14 billion in digital real estate investments and $22 billion in traditional commercial real estate debt and equity investments. With respect to investment interests on its balance sheet, the Company owns (a) a controlling 20% interest in DataBank, a leading provider of enterprise-class data center, cloud, and connectivity services, (b) a 71% interest in 358 healthcare properties, (c) a 94% interest in 157 hospitality properties, (d) approximately 67 million shares of Colony Credit Real Estate, Inc. (NYSE:CLNC), and (e) interests in various other equity and debt investments including general partnership interests in funds management by the Company commercial real estate equity and debt investments and other real estate-related securities. The Company is headquartered in Los Angeles with key offices in Boca Raton, New York, Paris and London, and has over 400 employees across 21 locations in 13 countries. For additional information regarding the Company and its management and business, please refer to www.clny.com.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This communication may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements relate to expectations, beliefs, projections, future plans and strategies, anticipated events or trends and similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” or “potential” or the negative of these words and phrases or similar words or phrases which are predictions of or indicate future events or trends and which do not relate solely to historical matters. You can also identify forward-looking statements by discussions of strategy, plans or intentions. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and contingencies, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, and may cause the Company’s actual results to differ significantly from those expressed in any forward-looking statement. Factors that might cause such a difference include, without limitation, the impact of the Coronavirus on the Company, the market, economic and environmental conditions in the digital and communications technology, healthcare and hospitality real estate, other commercial real estate equity and debt, and investment management sectors, whether the Company will continue to accelerate or otherwise successfully execute its strategic transition to become the leading digital real estate and infrastructure focused company, the Company’s bright prospects for growth and whether the Company will generate long-term, sustainable value for stockholders, the Company’s ability to capitalize on compelling global opportunities in the digital ecosystem and simplify its business to deliver value to its stockholders, the amount and timing of purchases of the Company’s stock by the Company’s joint venture with Blackwells, the Company’s liquidity and whether it can continue to maintain ample liquidity and financial flexibility, the Company’s use of its liquidity, the Company’s ability to pay dividends, the Company’s board composition, the impact of the digital transition on the Company’s legacy portfolios and assets, including whether such transition will result in significant impairments to certain of its investments, including healthcare and hospitality assets, including whether such transition will result in any of the anticipated benefits, the Company’s ability to continue deploying capital in its sponsored Digital Colony fund or to raise additional capital in future funds, whether the Company will enter into a definitive agreement to dispose of its management contract with CLNC, the pace of additional asset monetizations and other risks and uncertainties detailed in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including but not limited to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019. All forward-looking statements reflect the Company’s good faith beliefs, assumptions and expectations, but they are not guarantees of future performance. Additional information about these and other factors can be found in the Company’s reports filed from time to time with the SEC.

The Company cautions investors not to unduly rely on any forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this communication. The Company is under no duty to update any of these forward-looking statements after the date of this communication, nor to conform prior statements to actual results or revised expectations, and the Company does not intend to do so.

Wynn Resorts Statement Regarding Reduction of Executive Salaries

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LAS VEGAS–()–As part of its strategic plan to navigate through the financial downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Board of Directors and top executives at Wynn Resorts have agreed to forego between 33% and 100% of their salary for the remainder of 2020 in exchange for shares of Wynn stock. The Company’s CEO, Matt Maddox, agreed to forego 100% of his salary in exchange for shares for the remainder of the year. The cash savings arising from the executive salary reductions will be used to offset ongoing employee payroll and other expenses. The Company announced last week it would pay all of its employees, including their average tips, after it closed its resorts in Boston and Las Vegas to help reduce community spread of the virus.

About Wynn Resorts

Wynn Resorts, Limited is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol WYNN and is part of the S&P 500 Index. Wynn Resorts owns and operates Wynn Las Vegas (wynnlasvegas.com), Encore Boston Harbor (encorebostonharbor.com), Wynn Macau (wynnmacau.com), and Wynn Palace, Cotai (wynnpalace.com).

Wynn and Encore Las Vegas feature two luxury hotel towers with a total of 4,748 spacious hotel rooms, suites and villas, approximately 192,000 square feet of casino space, 22 dining experiences featuring signature chefs and 11 bars, two award-winning spas, approximately 290,000 square feet of meeting and convention space, approximately 160,000 square feet of retail space as well as two showrooms; two nightclubs, a beach club and recreation and leisure facilities. Wynn Las Vegas recently unveiled the new Wynn Golf Club and 18-hole, 129-acre championship golf course, and in February 2020 debuted a 430,000-square-foot meeting and convention space expansion powered by 100 percent renewable energy.

Encore Boston Harbor is a luxury resort destination featuring a 210,000 square foot casino, 671 hotel rooms, an ultra-premium spa, specialty retail, 15 dining and lounge venues, and more than 50,000 square feet of state-of-the-art ballroom and meeting spaces. Situated on the waterfront along the Mystic River in Everett, Massachusetts, the resort has created a six-acre public park and Harborwalk along the shoreline. It is the largest private, single-phase development in the history of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Wynn Macau is a luxury hotel and casino resort located in the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China with two luxury hotel towers with a total of 1,008 spacious rooms and suites, approximately 273,000 square feet of casino space, casual and fine dining in eight restaurants, approximately 31,000 square feet of meeting and convention space, approximately 59,000 square feet of retail space, and recreation and leisure facilities including two opulent spas, a salon and a rotunda show.

Wynn Palace is a luxury integrated resort in Macau. Designed as a floral-themed destination, it boasts 1,706 exquisite rooms, suites and villas, approximately 424,000 square feet of casino space, 13 food and beverage outlets, approximately 37,000 square feet of meeting and convention space, approximately 106,000 square feet of designer retail, SkyCabs that traverse an eight-acre Performance Lake, an extensive collection of rare art, a lush spa, salon and recreation and leisure facilities.

OneSpaWorld Provides COVID-19 Related Business Update

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NASSAU, Bahamas–()–OneSpaWorld Holdings Limited (NASDAQ: OSW) (“OneSpaWorld,” or the “Company”), the pre-eminent global provider of health and wellness services and products on-board cruise ships and in destination resorts around the world, today announced actions approved by its Board of Directors in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Leonard Fluxman, Executive Chairman of OneSpaWorld, commented, “Consistent with the guidance provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, our cruise line partners have voluntarily suspended all voyages through April 30, 2020, and all of our U.S and Caribbean-based destination resort spas have been temporarily closed. Under these unprecedented global market conditions, we are focused first and foremost on the safety of our staff and on maintaining our high state of readiness when normalized operations return. To this end, in addition to deferring all non-essential expenditures, as approved by the Board of Directors, the Company has deferred its scheduled dividend payment, and withdrawn its previously announced dividend program pending clarity on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. With these actions, we believe we remain well positioned as business conditions stabilize buoyed by our strong leadership position, highly-efficient business model and global operating platform.”

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company has taken the following actions:

  • Closed all spas on cruise ships where voyages have been cancelled;
  • Closed all U.S and Caribbean based destination resort spas;
  • Closed the majority of Asian based destination resort spas;
  • Withdrawn its first quarter and full year 2020 guidance issued on February 26, 2020, noting that it continues to expect a meaningful negative impact from cancelled voyages and resort spa closures, but cannot provide a reasonable basis for guidance at this time;
  • Increased financial flexibility by securing and reallocating capital resources, including:
    • repatriated 25% of all cruise ship personnel and therefore has no ongoing expense related to these employees;
    • in the process of repatriating substantially all remaining cruise ship personnel as soon as practicable;
    • furloughed 96% of US and Caribbean based destination resort spa personnel;
    • eliminating all non-essential operating and capital expenditures;
    • deferring payment of its dividend declared on February 26, 2020, for payment on May 29, 2020 to shareholders of record on April 10, 2020, until the Board of Directors reapproves its payment; and
    • withdrawing its dividend program until further notice.

The Company’s CEO, Glenn Fusfield, commented “We will draw on the strength of our cohesive, highly-experienced operating team, our irreplicable global platform, and our long-standing partnerships with our cruise line and resort partners to emerge from this incredibly turbulent time to regain our decades old record of profitable growth.”

About OneSpaWorld

OneSpaWorld is one of the largest health and wellness services companies in the world. OneSpaWorld’s distinguished spas offer guests a comprehensive suite of premium health, wellness, fitness and beauty services, treatments, and products currently onboard 176 cruise ships and at 68 destination resorts around the world. OneSpaWorld holds a leading market position within the international leisure market built upon its exceptional service standards, expansive global recruitment, training and logistics platforms, and a history of service and product innovation that has enhanced its guests’ personal care experiences while vacationing for over 50 years.

On March 19, 2019, OneSpaWorld completed a series of mergers pursuant to which OSW Predecessor (“OSW”), comprised of direct and indirect subsidiaries of Steiner Leisure Ltd., and Haymaker Acquisition Corp. (“Haymaker”), a special purpose acquisition company, each became indirect wholly owned subsidiaries of OneSpaWorld (the “Business Combination”). Haymaker is the acquirer and OSW the predecessor, whose historical results have become the historical results of OneSpaWorld.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The expectations, estimates, and projections of the Company may differ from its actual results and consequently, you should not rely on these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. Words such as “expect,” “estimate,” “project,” “budget,” “forecast,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “believes,” “predicts,” “potential,” “continue,” or the negative or other variations thereof and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, expectations with respect to future performance of the Company, including projected financial information (which is not audited or reviewed by the Company’s auditors), and the future plans, operations and opportunities for the Company and other statements that are not historical facts. These statements are based on the current expectations of the Company’s management and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the expected results. Factors that may cause such differences include, but are not limited to: the demand for the Company’s services together with the possibility that the Company may be adversely affected by other economic, business, and/or competitive factors or changes in the business environment in which the Company operates; changes in consumer preferences or the market for the Company’s services; the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our results of operation and liquidity for the foreseeable future; changes in applicable laws or regulations; the availability or competition for opportunities for expansion of the Company’s business; difficulties of managing growth profitably; the loss of one or more members of the Company’s management team; loss of a major customer and other risks and uncertainties included from time to time in the Company’s reports (including all amendments to those reports) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not exclusive. You should not place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. The Company does not undertake or accept any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in its expectations or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances on which any such statement is based, except as required by law. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company’s assessments as of any date subsequent to the date of this communication.

Pebblebrook Hotel Trust Announces Action Plan to Mitigate COVID-19 Impact

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BETHESDA, Md.–()–Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE: PEB) (the “Company” or “Pebblebrook”) today announced that in addition to the significant efforts underway to protect the health and safety of its guests and employees, as well as its communities, the Company has taken and is taking many substantial, additional steps to address the operating and financial impact of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

  • The Company and its hotel management companies have or will shortly be temporarily suspending operations at the vast majority of its hotels and resorts and have significantly reduced staffing and expenses at the properties that remain open. This difficult decision to suspend or dramatically reduce operations was made in response to numerous government mandates and health official recommendations, the effective elimination of hotel demand, and is in the best interest of the communities in which our properties and employees are located. As of yesterday, 28 of the Company’s hotels and resorts had suspended operations, with most of the Company’s remaining 26 hotels and resorts anticipated to suspend operations by March 30. In addition, the Company’s asset managers are working closely with our hotel operating partners to significantly reduce operating expenses and conserve cash over the immediate period.
  • Reduce capital investments by $50 million. The Company will conserve $50 million by postponing all non-essential capital investments other than completing the 2020 major projects which have been underway for many months, are purchased and are nearing completion in most cases and should be complete in the next month or two, assuming construction work is allowed to continue or restart as ordered by the local public authorities. The Company will re-evaluate all deferred 2020 and 2021 capital projects later in 2020 as clarity improves on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on hotel demand, the Company’s financial condition and the overall economic environment.

At the corporate level, Pebblebrook is taking aggressive actions to increase liquidity, reduce operating expenses and preserve cash.

  • The Company reduced its regular quarterly common dividend per share to one penny, conserving $50 million of cash per calendar quarter. The regular quarterly preferred dividend payments already declared will be made for the first quarter ending March 30, 2020. The Company’s Board of Trustees will continue to monitor the Company’s financial performance and economic outlook and intends to either resume a regular quarterly common dividend at a time and level determined to be prudent in 2020 or declare and pay any dividend required to be made for 2020 at the end of the year.
  • Increased liquidity to $740 million of cash on hand. Last week the Company drew down $643 million on its $650 million unsecured credit facility out of an abundance of caution to ensure that the Company has sufficient liquidity and funds to meet its ongoing operating needs for a sustained period. The Company has no scheduled debt maturities until November 2021. The Company’s bank group has been highly supportive and complimentary of Pebblebrook’s quick, decisive and comprehensive efforts to conserve cash and safeguard the value of the Company and its properties.
  • Executive Officers and the Board of Trustees of Pebblebrook have volunteered to substantially reduce their compensation for 2020. Jon E. Bortz, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer, has volunteered to forego his salary for the remainder of the year, effective April 1, 2020. Raymond D. Martz, Chief Financial Officer, and Thomas C. Fisher, Chief Investment Officer, have both volunteered to reduce their salaries by 30% for the remainder of the year, also effective April 1, 2020. The Board of Trustees has also volunteered to reduce their Independent Trustee compensation for 2020 by 30%. In addition, all three executive officers have agreed to forfeit any eligible cash bonuses for 2020 in lieu of shares and to forfeit all of the long-term share retention awards that were recently approved by the Board in February 2020 and granted before the rapidly accelerating events of the last few weeks.
  • Reduced Corporate G&A Expenses by approximately $7 million. In addition to the various reduced salary, cash bonuses, and forfeiture of long-term retention share awards by the executive officers and Board of Trustees, the Company has enacted significant cost-saving measures and reductions, including corporate-wide employee salary reductions, forfeiture of cash bonuses in lieu of shares and forfeitures of restricted stock awards. In addition, the Company is also implementing a comprehensive cost reduction plan for corporate operating expenses. The Company anticipates these extensive reductions in executive officer, trustee and employee compensation, and other cost-cutting measures will reduce corporate G&A expenses by approximately $7 million for 2020.

“In the recent weeks since the COVID-19 outbreak expanded to impact the global economy, our country and the cities and resort areas in which we operate, we have made the difficult decision to temporarily suspend operations at the vast majority of our hotels and resorts to protect our guests, our employees and our communities and to safeguard long-term value for our shareholders,” said Mr. Bortz. “Our thoughts are with the more than 8,000 hardworking hotel employees and their families across our portfolio through this challenging period, and we expect these furloughs will be temporary. We have been working tirelessly with other industry leaders in conjunction with our political leaders to provide comprehensive financial support for our hotel employees and those throughout our industry. In the coming weeks, we and our hotel operating partners will be working on our plans to reopen and ramp up our hotels and resorts as soon as conditions improve, and we look forward to welcoming back our property associates at that time. Our seasoned executive team has been through numerous crises, and as a result, we have quickly taken decisive steps to enhance the Company’s liquidity and reduce our cash expenditures as we manage through an unprecedented and frankly unimaginable decline in hotel travel demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the actions of our governments and society to contain it and limit its toll.”

About Pebblebrook Hotel Trust

Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE: PEB) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (“REIT”) and the largest owner of urban and resort lifestyle hotels in the United States. The Company owns 54 hotels, totaling approximately 13,400 guest rooms across 15 urban and resort markets with a focus on the west coast gateway cities. For more information, visit www.pebblebrookhotels.com and follow us at @PebblebrookPEB.

This press release contains certain “forward-looking statements” made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are generally identifiable by use of forward-looking terminology such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “potential,” “intend,” “expect,” “seek,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “approximately,” “believe,” “could,” “project,” “predict,” “forecast,” “continue,” “assume,” “plan,” references to “outlook” or other similar words or expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions and can include future expectations, future plans and strategies, financial and operating projections and forecasts and other forward-looking information and estimates. Examples of forward-looking statements include, among others: expectations of the Company’s future economic performance, savings due to cost-cutting measures, payments of dividends and the sufficiency of cash to meet operational needs. These forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company’s control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the state of the U.S. economy, the supply of hotel properties, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and other factors as are described in greater detail in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019. Unless legally required, the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For further information about the Company’s business and financial results, please refer to the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Risk Factors” sections of the Company’s SEC filings, including, but not limited to, its Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, copies of which may be obtained at the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website at www.pebblebrookhotels.com.

All information in this press release is as of March 23, 2020. The Company undertakes no duty to update the statements in this press release to conform the statements to actual results or changes in the Company’s expectations.

RLJ Lodging Trust Declares Dividends for First Quarter of 2020

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BETHESDA, Md.–()–RLJ Lodging Trust (the “Company”) (NYSE: RLJ) today announced that due to the unprecedented uncertainty created by the rapidly evolving impact of COVID-19 on the travel industry, lodging demand and the broader U.S. economy, the Company’s Board of Trustees has decided to reduce the Company’s regular quarterly dividend for the first quarter. The Company’s Board of Trustees authorized and declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.01 per common share of beneficial interest for the first quarter. The dividend is payable on April 15, 2020 to shareholders of record as of March 31, 2020.

“In light of the uncertain environment that we are operating in, preserving liquidity and maintaining a flexible balance sheet are our top priorities,” commented Leslie D. Hale, President and Chief Executive Officer. “We have a solid balance sheet and no near term debt maturities, which should help us navigate these uncertain times.”

The Board of Trustees also authorized and declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.4875 on the Company’s Series A Preferred Shares. The dividend is payable on April 30, 2020, to shareholders of record as of March 31, 2020.

About Us

RLJ Lodging Trust is a self-advised, publicly traded real estate investment trust that owns primarily premium-branded, high-margin, focused-service and compact full-service hotels. The Company’s portfolio consists of 103 hotels with approximately 22,570 rooms, located in 23 states and the District of Columbia and an ownership interest in one unconsolidated hotel with 171 rooms.

Forward Looking Statements

The following information contains certain statements, other than purely historical information, including estimates, projections, statements relating to the Company’s business plans, objectives and expected operating results, and the assumptions upon which those statements are based, that are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the use of the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “will continue,” “intend,” “should,” or similar expressions. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, beliefs and expectations, such forward-looking statements are not predictions of future events or guarantees of future performance and the Company’s actual results could differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Some factors that might cause such a difference include the following: the current global economic uncertainty, increased direct competition, changes in government regulations or accounting rules, changes in local, national and global real estate conditions, declines in the lodging industry, seasonality of the lodging industry, risks related to natural disasters, such as earthquakes and hurricanes, hostilities, including future terrorist attacks or fear of hostilities that affect travel, the Company’s ability to obtain lines of credit or permanent financing on satisfactory terms, changes in interest rates, access to capital through offerings of the Company’s common and preferred shares of beneficial interest, or debt, the Company’s ability to identify suitable acquisitions, the Company’s ability to close on identified acquisitions and integrate those businesses and inaccuracies of the Company’s accounting estimates. Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The Company cautions investors not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements and urge investors to carefully review the disclosures the Company makes concerning risks and uncertainties in the sections entitled “Risk Factors,” “Forward-Looking Statements,” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in the Company’s Annual Report, as well as risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed in other documents filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

For additional information or to receive press releases via email, please visit our website: http://www.rljlodgingtrust.com

RLJ Lodging Trust Withdraws 2020 Financial Outlook Due to Increased Uncertainty from COVID-19

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BETHESDA, Md.–()–RLJ Lodging Trust (the “Company”) (NYSE: RLJ) today announced that it is withdrawing its first quarter and full year 2020 outlook issued as of February 25, 2020, due to the growing uncertainty and travel related concerns and restrictions related to the COVID-19 (“Coronavirus”).

“Over the past week, we have experienced a notable increase in transient and group cancellations that is negatively impacting our business and ability to achieve our financial targets,” commented Leslie D. Hale, President and Chief Executive Officer. “In light of the ongoing uncertainty and evolving situation surrounding the Coronavirus, we believe it is prudent to suspend our financial outlook until we have improved clarity. In the meantime, RLJ is extremely well-positioned to navigate through this period of uncertainty with a seasoned management team, a solid balance sheet and significant liquidity that allow us to continue to generate meaningful shareholder value.”

About Us

RLJ Lodging Trust is a self-advised, publicly traded real estate investment trust that owns primarily premium-branded, high-margin, focused-service and compact full-service hotels. The Company’s portfolio consists of 103 hotels with approximately 22,570 rooms, located in 23 states and the District of Columbia and an ownership interest in one unconsolidated hotel with 171 rooms.

Forward Looking Statements

The following information contains certain statements, other than purely historical information, including estimates, projections, statements relating to the Company’s business plans, objectives and expected operating results, and the assumptions upon which those statements are based, that are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the use of the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “will continue,” “intend,” “should,” or similar expressions. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, beliefs and expectations, such forward-looking statements are not predictions of future events or guarantees of future performance and the Company’s actual results could differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Some factors that might cause such a difference include the following: the current global economic uncertainty, increased direct competition, changes in government regulations or accounting rules, changes in local, national and global real estate conditions, declines in the lodging industry, seasonality of the lodging industry, risks related to natural disasters, such as earthquakes and hurricanes, hostilities, including future terrorist attacks or fear of hostilities that affect travel, the Company’s ability to obtain lines of credit or permanent financing on satisfactory terms, changes in interest rates, access to capital through offerings of the Company’s common and preferred shares of beneficial interest, or debt, the Company’s ability to identify suitable acquisitions, the Company’s ability to close on identified acquisitions and integrate those businesses and inaccuracies of the Company’s accounting estimates. Given these uncertainties, undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The Company cautions investors not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements and urge investors to carefully review the disclosures the Company makes concerning risks and uncertainties in the sections entitled “Risk Factors,” “Forward-Looking Statements,” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in the Company’s Annual Report, as well as risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed in other documents filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

For additional information or to receive press releases via email, please visit our website: http://www.rljlodgingtrust.com