Fmr LLC Sells 131 Shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

Fmr LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,214 shares of the company’s stock after selling 131 shares during the period. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Choice Hotels International were worth $419,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 307.4% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Choice Hotels International by 129.4% in the second quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in Choice Hotels International by 1,146.9% in the second quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Choice Hotels International during the second quarter worth $56,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International during the second quarter worth $69,000. Institutional investors own 65.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on CHH. Barclays raised their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Choice Hotels International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Choice Hotels International from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Choice Hotels International from $118.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Choice Hotels International presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $134.18.

Choice Hotels International Stock Performance

Shares of CHH stock opened at $140.70 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.60 billion, a PE ratio of 26.95, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.23. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $143.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $130.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 177.75, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a one year low of $108.91 and a one year high of $153.81.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.31. Choice Hotels International had a net margin of 16.27% and a negative return on equity of 659.01%. The company had revenue of $428.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $432.62 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.82 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 6.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Choice Hotels International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.2875 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.15 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. Choice Hotels International’s payout ratio is currently 22.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Patrick Cimerola sold 1,714 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total transaction of $231,390.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 18,084 shares in the company, valued at $2,441,340. The trade was a 8.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Dominic Dragisich sold 9,138 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.88, for a total transaction of $1,232,533.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,240,493.92. This represents a 11.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 53,572 shares of company stock worth $7,562,444. Company insiders own 24.02% of the company’s stock.

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.