Retirement Systems of Alabama Trims Stock Position in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its holdings in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 31,184 shares of the company’s stock after selling 267 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned approximately 0.06% of Choice Hotels International worth $3,533,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Choice Hotels International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 42.2% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 566 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 143.5% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 577 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 340 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International in the 3rd quarter worth $200,000. Finally, Axxcess Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Choice Hotels International during the third quarter valued at about $203,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.57% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CHH has been the topic of a number of research reports. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $142.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $122.00 to $114.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International from $140.00 to $137.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Choice Hotels International from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $96.00 to $156.00 in a report on Monday, March 11th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Choice Hotels International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Choice Hotels International has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $130.80.

Choice Hotels International Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of Choice Hotels International stock opened at $122.19 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.02, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a 1-year low of $108.91 and a 1-year high of $136.02. The business has a 50-day moving average of $121.66 and a 200-day moving average of $117.23. The company has a market capitalization of $6.07 billion, a PE ratio of 24.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.21.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.09. Choice Hotels International had a net margin of 16.74% and a return on equity of 594.23%. The firm had revenue of $358.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $369.44 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.26 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 6.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.2875 per share. This represents a $1.15 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 1st. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.73%.

Choice Hotels International 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.