Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) Director Ervin R. Shames Sells 2,000 Shares

Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) Director Ervin R. Shames sold 2,000 shares of Choice Hotels International stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.56, for a total transaction of $259,120.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 52,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,764,586.72. This trade represents a 3.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Choice Hotels International Stock Down 1.3%

Choice Hotels International stock opened at $131.13 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.08 billion, a PE ratio of 21.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.00. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.22 and a 52-week high of $157.86. The company’s 50 day moving average is $127.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $138.94.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by ($0.04). Choice Hotels International had a negative return on equity of 472.31% and a net margin of 18.91%. The company had revenue of $332.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $348.52 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.28 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $0.2875 per share. This represents a $1.15 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.56%.

Institutional Trading of Choice Hotels International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in Choice Hotels International by 89.8% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 50,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,657,000 after buying an additional 23,726 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in Choice Hotels International by 8.9% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 108,512 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,408,000 after buying an additional 8,887 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in Choice Hotels International in the first quarter valued at $1,634,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Choice Hotels International by 13.3% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 110,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,610,000 after buying an additional 12,904 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd raised its stake in Choice Hotels International by 53.6% in the first quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 4,672 shares of the company’s stock valued at $620,000 after buying an additional 1,631 shares in the last quarter. 65.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Choice Hotels International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $132.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of Choice Hotels International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 15th. Bank of America increased their price target on Choice Hotels International from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Choice Hotels International from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Choice Hotels International from $124.00 to $115.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $133.38.

Choice Hotels International Company Profile

Choice Hotels International, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a hotel franchisor in the United States and internationally. It operates through Hotel Franchising & Management and Corporate & Other segments. The company franchises lodging properties under the brand names of Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Clarion, Clarion Pointe, Sleep Inn, Ascend Hotel Collection, Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn, MainStay Suites, Suburban Studios, WoodSpring Suites, Everhome Suites, Cambria Hotels, Radisson Blu, Radisson RED, Radisson, Park Plaza, Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, Radisson Inn & Suites, Park Inn by Radisson, Radisson Individuals, and Radisson Collection.