Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $134.60 and last traded at $134.55, with a volume of 24429 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $133.42.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on CHH. Barclays lowered their target price on Choice Hotels International from $114.00 to $112.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Choice Hotels International from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Susquehanna assumed coverage on Choice Hotels International in a research report on Friday, June 21st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Choice Hotels International from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $120.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price target on Choice Hotels International from $144.00 to $134.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $125.64.

Choice Hotels International Trading Up 0.2 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 177.75, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $126.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $122.30.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.86 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $435.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $438.29 million. Choice Hotels International had a negative return on equity of 3,953.67% and a net margin of 15.42%. The business’s revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.75 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 6.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a $0.2875 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.91%.

Insider Transactions at Choice Hotels International

In other news, CEO Patrick Pacious sold 10,025 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 404,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,709,646.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, SVP Simone Wu sold 7,840 shares of Choice Hotels International stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.08, for a total transaction of $1,019,827.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 45,669 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,940,623.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Patrick Pacious sold 10,025 shares of Choice Hotels International stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.37, for a total value of $1,206,709.25. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 404,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,709,646.42. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 24.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Choice Hotels International

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CHH. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Choice Hotels International during the fourth quarter valued at $1,072,000. Vima LLC acquired a new stake in Choice Hotels International during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Congress Asset Management Co. MA raised its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 29.8% during the first quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 50,479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,378,000 after buying an additional 11,581 shares in the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV bought a new position in Choice Hotels International during the first quarter valued at about $216,000. Finally, Ironwood Financial llc bought a new position in Choice Hotels International during the first quarter valued at about $204,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.57% of the company’s stock.

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.