Boston Trust Walden Corp Increases Stake in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its position in shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH - Free Report) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 949,586 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 9,490 shares during the quarter. Choice Hotels International accounts for 0.9% of Boston Trust Walden Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Boston Trust Walden Corp owned 2.02% of Choice Hotels International worth $134,822,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of CHH. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in Choice Hotels International during the 3rd quarter worth $19,545,000. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Choice Hotels International by 45.4% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 364,983 shares of the company's stock worth $47,557,000 after buying an additional 113,951 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake 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 purchasing an additional 111,903 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake 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 purchasing an additional 34,396 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International during the 3rd quarter worth $42,280,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.57% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CHH. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $129.00 price target (down from $145.00) on shares of Choice Hotels International in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $118.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $136.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Choice Hotels International news, CEO Patrick Pacious sold 7,192 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.95, for a total transaction of $1,042,480.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 404,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at $58,656,336.70. This trade represents a 1.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 24.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Choice Hotels International Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of Choice Hotels International stock traded up $4.52 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $155.67. 397,272 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 322,470. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a twelve month low of $108.91 and a twelve month high of $155.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $144.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $136.63.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts' expectations of $432.62 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.82 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 6.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Choice Hotels International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.2875 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Choice Hotels International's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.03%.

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.