Extended Stay America (STAY) will raise its quarterly dividend by 4.5 percent to $0.23 per share in 2019. Last year the dividend was increased by 4.8 percent.

The next dividend will be paid on May 30, 2019 to shareholders of record on May 16, 2019. The new annualized dividend rate of 92 cents per share yields 5.1% at a stock price of $18.00.

Extended Stay America’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Jonathan Halkyard, commented,  “Today we increased our dividend for the fifth consecutive year, highlighting our strong cash generation ability and our commitment to return significant capital to shareholders.”

Extended Stay America is the leading brand in the mid-priced extended stay segment in the U.S. with 628 hotels and approximately twice as many rooms as its nearest competitor.  ESH Hospitality, Inc. (“ESH”), a subsidiary of Extended Stay America, Inc. (“ESA”), is the largest lodging REIT in North America by unit and room count, with 554 hotels and approximately 61,500 rooms in the U.S. ESA also manages or franchises an additional 74 Extended Stay America hotels.