Insider Selling: Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) Director Sells 2,000 Shares of Stock

Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) Director Ervin R. Shames sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.56, for a total value of $259,120.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 52,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,764,586.72. This represents a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Choice Hotels International Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:CHH traded up $1.37 during trading on Monday, reaching $132.06. The stock had a trading volume of 350,839 shares, compared to its average volume of 395,291. The stock has a market cap of $6.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.20, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.00. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $127.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $139.03. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $109.22 and a fifty-two week high of $157.86.

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

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be issued a $0.2875 dividend. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 1st. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio is 17.56%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Choice Hotels International

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 66.2% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co. bought a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 64.7% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in Choice Hotels International by 30.3% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 370 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 55.8% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 430 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on CHH. StockNews.com lowered Choice Hotels International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 15th. Susquehanna set a $140.00 price target on Choice Hotels International and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Choice Hotels International from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price target for the company from $141.00 to $138.00 in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $133.38.

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.