Swiss National Bank Has $7.90 Million Position in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

Swiss National Bank cut its stake in shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,667 shares of the company’s stock after selling 700 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.12% of Choice Hotels International worth $7,904,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 949,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,822,000 after buying an additional 9,490 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Choice Hotels International by 38.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 402,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,419,000 after purchasing an additional 111,903 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International in the 4th quarter valued at about $48,201,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Choice Hotels International by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 279,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,634,000 after purchasing an additional 2,725 shares during the period. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International in the 3rd quarter valued at about $19,545,000. 65.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Dominic Dragisich sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.30, for a total value of $519,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,219,797.90. This represents a 4.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Scott E. Oaksmith sold 1,780 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.40, for a total value of $257,032.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 32,014 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,622,821.60. This represents a 5.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 24.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Choice Hotels International Stock Performance

Shares of CHH opened at $129.65 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $143.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $140.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.25. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $109.22 and a 52 week high of $157.86.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $389.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $374.24 million. Choice Hotels International had a negative return on equity of 472.31% and a net margin of 18.91%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.2875 dividend. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CHH. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America boosted their target price on Choice Hotels International from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Choice Hotels International from $138.00 to $137.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Choice Hotels International from $131.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.33.

About Choice Hotels International

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.