State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 1,394 Shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) by 8.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,404 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,394 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Choice Hotels International were worth $2,045,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CHH. Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in shares of Choice Hotels International during the 3rd quarter worth $19,545,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 38.5% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 402,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,419,000 after buying an additional 111,903 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 31.4% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 143,783 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,735,000 after buying an additional 34,396 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Choice Hotels International during the 3rd quarter worth $42,280,000. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas bought a new stake in shares of Choice Hotels International during the 3rd quarter worth $2,691,000. 65.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on CHH. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Choice Hotels International from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Choice Hotels International from $150.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on Choice Hotels International from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Susquehanna increased their target price on Choice Hotels International from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Choice Hotels International from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Choice Hotels International presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $136.58.

Choice Hotels International Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of CHH stock opened at $150.53 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $7.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.16, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $145.10 and a 200-day moving average of $138.47. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a 1-year low of $108.91 and a 1-year high of $157.86.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $374.24 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.2875 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.46%.

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.