Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) Upgraded to “Neutral” at Redburn Atlantic

Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) from a sell rating to a neutral rating in a report issued on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has $132.00 price target on the stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $131.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $138.00 to $137.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Choice Hotels International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Choice Hotels International has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $140.62.

Choice Hotels International Price Performance

Shares of CHH stock opened at $131.55 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.12, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.25. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $143.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $140.63. Choice Hotels International has a 1 year low of $109.22 and a 1 year high of $157.86.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.10. Choice Hotels International had a negative return on equity of 472.31% and a net margin of 18.91%. The business had revenue of $389.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $374.24 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Choice Hotels International will post 7.07 EPS for the current year.

Choice Hotels International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.2875 per share. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.46%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Dominic Dragisich sold 3,500 shares of Choice Hotels International stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.30, for a total value of $519,050.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 68,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,219,797.90. The trade was a 4.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Scott E. Oaksmith sold 1,780 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 32,014 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,622,821.60. This trade represents a 5.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 24.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Choice Hotels International

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,423,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $344,070,000 after purchasing an additional 8,362 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its position 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 valued at $134,822,000 after buying an additional 9,490 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 38.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 402,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,419,000 after acquiring an additional 111,903 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International in the fourth quarter valued at about $48,201,000. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 69.8% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 292,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,577,000 after acquiring an additional 120,376 shares during the period. 65.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.