Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,990,000 shares, a decline of 9.3% from the October 31st total of 5,500,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 321,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 15.5 days. Currently, 19.5% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Transactions at Choice Hotels International

In other news, SVP Simone Wu sold 7,840 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.08, for a total value of $1,019,827.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 45,669 shares in the company, valued at $5,940,623.52. This trade represents a 14.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Patrick Pacious sold 10,025 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.37, for a total value of $1,206,709.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 404,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,709,646.42. This trade represents a 2.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 71,437 shares of company stock worth $9,788,980. Company insiders own 24.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Choice Hotels International

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CHH. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 77.2% in the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 4,105,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,590,000 after purchasing an additional 1,788,563 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its position in Choice Hotels International by 0.9% in the second quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 941,560 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,046,000 after acquiring an additional 8,033 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Choice Hotels International by 4.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 675,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,340,000 after purchasing an additional 26,289 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in Choice Hotels International by 45.4% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 364,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,557,000 after purchasing an additional 113,951 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 51.5% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 266,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,767,000 after purchasing an additional 90,765 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.57% of the company’s stock.

Choice Hotels International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CHH opened at $149.98 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $139.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $128.01. Choice Hotels International has a twelve month low of $108.91 and a twelve month high of $153.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 177.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.04 billion, a PE ratio of 28.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.23.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $0.31. Choice Hotels International had a negative return on equity of 659.01% and a net margin of 16.27%. The company had revenue of $428.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $432.62 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.82 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Choice Hotels International will post 6.84 EPS for the current year.

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st were issued a $0.2875 dividend. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 1st. Choice Hotels International’s payout ratio is 22.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Choice Hotels International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $113.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com raised Choice Hotels International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Choice Hotels International from $134.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Choice Hotels International has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $130.00.

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.