Ashford Hospitality Trust signed a
definitive agreement to acquire a portfolio of 51 hotels from CNL
Hotels and Resorts in a $2.4 billion transaction.
The portfolio
became available due to a $6.6 billion deal announced Jan. 19, in
which CNL Hotels agreed to be acquired by Morgan Stanley Real
Estate. Under terms of the acquisition, CNL shareholders will get
$20.50 per share.
Morgan Stanley
will retain eight of CNL's properties, including three operating
under Hilton's Waldorf-Astoria Collection brand: the Grand Wailea
Resort Hotel & Spa in Maui; the La Quinta Resort & Club and
PGA West in La Quinta, Calif.; and the Arizona Biltmore Resort
& Spa in Phoenix.
In December, CNL
sold a portfolio of 32 hotels to Whitehall Street Global Real
Estate in a $405 million transaction.
The portfolio to
be acquired by Ashford includes 24 full-service, upper-upscale
hotels with a total of 7,953 rooms under several brands, including
Hilton, Embassy Suites, JW Marriott, Marriott, Doubletree,
Renaissance and Hyatt.
The Ashford
portfolio also includes 27 select-service hotels with a total of
5,571 rooms under several brands, including Courtyard by Marriott,
Residence Inn by Marriott, SpringHill Suites by Marriott, Fairfield
Inn by Marriott, TownePlace Suites by Marriott and Hampton
Inn.
"This portfolio
of well-located and strong-performing assets is one of the best
hotel collections we've seen in the past decade, and we are
extremely pleased to acquire it with a structure that is accretive
to shareholders in the first year of ownership," said Monty
Bennett, Ashford's CEO.
In 2004, Ashford
acquired a portfolio of 21 hotels from companies controlled by
Fisher Brothers, the Gordon Getty Trust and George
Soros.
To contact reporter Michael Milligan, send e-mail to [email protected].