 - Hotel and Corporate Cash Burn Rates Better than Forecasted - - Monthly Occupancy Levels Improve During Quarter - - Open NYC Hotels Generate 61 Occupancy in the Second Quarter - - 33 of the Companys 48 Hotels Open and Operational -PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 05, 2020 GLOBE NEWSWIRE -- Hersha Hospitality Trust NYSE: HT Hersha, Company, we or our, owner of high-quality upscale and lifestyle hotels in urban gateway markets and resort destinations, today announced results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2020.Second Quarter 2020 Financial ResultsNet loss applicable to common shareholders was approximately 67.5 million, or 1.75 per diluted common share, in the second quarter 2020, compared to net loss applicable to common shareholders of approximately 0.4 million, or 0.02 per diluted common share, in the second quarter 2019. The decrease in second quarter 2020 net income and net income per diluted common share is due to the unprecedented impact on the travel industry from the COVID-19 pandemic.AFFO in the second quarter 2020 decreased by 60.3 million, or 180.2, to 26.8 million, compared to 33.4 million in the second quarter 2019. AFFO per diluted common share and OP Unit in the second quarter 2020 was 0.62. An explanation of certain non-GAAP financial measures used in this press release, including, among others, AFFO, as well as reconciliations of those non-GAAP financial measures, to GAAP net income, is included at the end of this press release. Mr. Jay H. Shah, Hershas Chief Executive Officer, stated, The second quarter proved to be one of the most challenging in history and will mark the trough for the U.S. economy during this crisis. The hotel industry continues to be significantly impacted by the pandemic, but we saw encouraging relative performance from the portfolio as a result of the immediate and aggressive measures implemented in collaboration with our operating partners to limit our losses. We remain focused on liquidity preservation and minimizing our cash burn rates through attentive corporate and hotel level operating strategies that were executed at the onset of the crisis. Our relationship with our independent franchise operators allowed us to enact cost-saving initiatives in real-time to maintain operations at 21 comparable hotels with a nominal staff in the initial months following the demand shock. Our unique owner-operator relationship allowed us to immediately kickstart reopening strategies in our markets as demand trends improved over the balance of the second quarter and July. As of August 1st, we have 33 of 48 hotels open including sought after drive-to properties such as the Sanctuary Beach Resort in Monterey and core urban assets such as The Envoy in Boston. Mr. Shah continued, We remain encouraged by the performance of our drive-to hotels and resorts, which account for 25 of our portfolio EBITDA. We are happy to have this asset mix in our portfolio during this challenging period, but we remain confident in the long-term fundamentals of our purpose-built clusters in core gateway markets. Visitation to urban destinations is not currently top of mind for travelers, but these cities are battle-tested in prior demand shocks such as September 11th and the Great Financial Crisis, and their resiliency was proved out with visitation returning in short order following these catastrophic events. We expect to have substantially all of the portfolio hotels operating by the end of September and now more than ever, our ability to stay nimble and leverage our flexible operating model in close connection with our independent franchise operators allows us to reopen and operate our hotels in a cost-efficient manner, gives us the opportunity to reduce our cash burn rates and breakeven levels, and sets up our portfolio to generate cash flow as we continue to navigate this recovery. Second Quarter 2020 Operating ResultsThe Company had 21 comparable hotels fully open and operational throughout the second-quarter, which generated 33.7 occupancy and an average daily rate of 133.47. Our open New York City hotels, which constitutes the 5 boroughs, generated 61.0 occupancy during the second-quarter, highlighted by our select-service offerings in the JFK sub-market and our Hampton Inn Seaport which ended the quarter with 94.9 occupancy. On the West Coast, The Sanctuary Beach Resort just north of Monterey, ended the second quarter with an average daily rate of 340.28 and occupancy of 71.2. As of August 1, 2020, 15 of the Companys 48 hotels continued to have suspended operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We anticipate all but 4 of these closed hotels will be open by mid-September. Please find additional details of Hershas hotel reopening plan in the quarterly supplemental report published along with this release on our corporate website.Cash BurnEntering the second-quarter, the Company anticipated it would lose approximately 11 million per month based on forecasted trends. Burn rates throughout the quarter improved from 10.5 million in April to 7.8 million during June, a 26 decline, bringing the total cash loss for the second quarter to 26.9 million, approximately 13 better than forecasted at the beginning of the quarter.FinancingThe Company completed the second quarter 2020 with approximately 23.2 million of cash and cash equivalents. At the end of the second-quarter, the Company had drawn 95 million of its 250 million Senior Revolving Line of Credit. As of June 30, 2020, 85.0 of the Companys consolidated debt was fixed rate debt or hedged through interest rate swaps and caps. The Companys total consolidated debt had a weighted average interest rate of approximately 3.70 and a weighted average life-to-maturity of approximately 3.2 years.Rest AssuredTMDuring the second quarter, Hersha launched its health and safety program, Rest AssuredTM, at each of its portfolio hotels. The newly implemented cleanliness program is focused on utilizing advanced cleaning practices to ensure the well-being of guests, associates, and the communities in which the Company operates. These protocols are complemented by innovative technologies to streamline the guest experience and support transparent communication before and throughout the duration of guests stays.Full-Year 2020 Outlook Due to the uncertainty surrounding the lodging industry stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company has suspended its full-year 2020 guidance.Second Quarter 2020 Conference CallThe Company will host a conference call to discuss these results at 9:00 AM Eastern Time on Thursday, August 6, 2020. Hosting the call will be Mr. Jay H. Shah, Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Neil H. Shah, President and Chief Operating Officer, and Mr. Ashish Parikh, Chief Financial Officer.A live audio webcast of the conference call will be available on the Companys website at The conference call can be accessed by dialing 1-888-317-6003 or 1-412-317-6061 for international participants and entering the passcode 9039763 approximately 10 minutes in advance of the call. A replay of the call will be available from 11:00 AM Eastern Time on Thursday, August 6, 2020, through 11:59 PM Eastern Time on Saturday, September 5, 2020. The replay can be accessed by dialing 1-877-344-7529 or 1-412-317-0088 for international participants. The passcode for the replay is 10145491. A replay of the webcast will be available on the Companys website for a limited time.About Hersha Hospitality TrustHersha Hospitality Trust HT is a self-advised real estate investment trust in the hospitality sector, which owns and operates high quality upscale and lifestyle hotels in urban gateway markets and resort destinations. The Companys 48 hotels totaling 7,644 rooms are located in New York, Washington, DC, Boston, Philadelphia, South Florida and select markets on the West Coast. The Companys common shares are traded on The New York Stock Exchange under the ticker HT. Non-GAAP Financial Measures and Key Performance MetricsCommon key performance metrics utilized by the lodging industry are occupancy, average daily rate ADR, and revenue per available room RevPAR. Occupancy is calculated as the percentage total rooms sold compared to rooms available to be sold, while ADR measures the average rate earned per occupied room, calculate as total room revenue divided by total rooms sold. RevPAR is a derivative of these two metrics which shows the total room revenue earned per room available to be sold. Management uses these metrics in comparison to other hotels in our self-defined competitive peer set within proximity to each of our hotel properties.An explanation of Funds from Operations FFO, AFFO, Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization EBITDA, EBITDAre, Adjusted EBITDA and Hotel EBITDA, as well as reconciliations of such non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP measures, is included at the end of this release.Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward Looking Statements Certain matters within this press release are discussed using forward-looking statements, including those with regard to the potential future impact of COVID-19, within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions 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 projected in the forward-looking statements. 