PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Trims Position in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) by 17.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,223 shares of the company’s stock after selling 255 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Choice Hotels International were worth $139,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CHH. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 144.2% in the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 939,114 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,402,000 after acquiring an additional 554,479 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,177,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $389,298,000 after purchasing an additional 207,019 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Choice Hotels International by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 621,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,396,000 after purchasing an additional 62,174 shares in the last quarter. Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in Choice Hotels International during the third quarter valued at approximately $4,848,000. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC purchased a new position in Choice Hotels International during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,119,000. 65.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Choice Hotels International Price Performance

NYSE CHH opened at $117.65 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.25, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 177.75, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $116.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $118.27. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a 1 year low of $108.91 and a 1 year high of $136.02.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.13. Choice Hotels International had a return on equity of 748.46% and a net margin of 15.34%. The business had revenue of $331.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $343.04 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.12 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 6.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.2875 per share. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 1st. Choice Hotels International’s payout ratio is 24.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on Choice Hotels International from $128.00 to $112.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 9th. Truist Financial cut their target price on Choice Hotels International from $146.00 to $144.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Choice Hotels International from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $96.00 to $156.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Barclays cut their price objective 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $129.09.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Robert J. Mcdowell sold 1,243 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.58, for a total transaction of $146,151.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 38,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,527,065.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 24.02% of the company’s stock.

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.