Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) CFO Scott Oaksmith Sells 2,000 Shares of Stock

Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) CFO Scott Oaksmith sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.35, for a total value of $240,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,751,550.20. This represents a 6.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Choice Hotels International Stock Down 2.0%

Choice Hotels International stock opened at $117.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.52, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a 1-year low of $84.04 and a 1-year high of $123.82. The company has a market cap of $5.25 billion, a PE ratio of 26.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.65. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $104.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.32.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 2nd. The company reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.29 by $0.04. Choice Hotels International had a return on equity of 216.71% and a net margin of 12.65%. The firm had revenue of $458.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $447.56 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. Choice Hotels International’s revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 6.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Choice Hotels International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 1st were paid a $0.2875 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 1st. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.56%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 21,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,215,000 after buying an additional 636 shares during the last quarter. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International in the third quarter worth $210,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 2.2% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 14,435 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,478,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 4.5% in the third quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 2,156 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 4.8% in the third quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 4,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $445,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International from $119.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Wedbush set a $130.00 target price on shares of Choice Hotels International in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Choice Hotels International from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $114.86.

Choice Hotels International Company Profile

Choice Hotels International, Inc is a global lodging franchisor that licenses its hotel brands to independent owners and operators. The company supports its franchisees through brand standards, reservation and distribution systems, marketing, loyalty programs, technology, and operational services rather than primarily owning and operating hotels itself.

Its portfolio includes brands serving a range of price points and travel needs, including Comfort, Quality Inn, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Econo Lodge, MainStay Suites, Suburban Studios, WoodSpring Suites, Cambria Hotels, and the Ascend Hotel Collection.