Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB trimmed its holdings in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH - Free Report) by 20.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,651 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,000 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Choice Hotels International were worth $1,086,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CHH. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 33.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 16,834 shares of the company's stock worth $2,193,000 after buying an additional 4,219 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its stake in Choice Hotels International by 30.1% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 14,889 shares of the company's stock worth $1,940,000 after buying an additional 3,446 shares during the period. Twelve Points Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Choice Hotels International in the fourth quarter worth $879,000. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International in the 3rd quarter valued at $19,545,000. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 82,131 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,661,000 after acquiring an additional 12,128 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.57% of the company's stock.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

CHH has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays raised their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com upgraded Choice Hotels International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Susquehanna upped their price target on Choice Hotels International from $130.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International from $113.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Choice Hotels International from $118.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $139.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at Choice Hotels International

In related news, EVP Dominic Dragisich sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.30, for a total transaction of $519,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,913 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,219,797.90. This represents a 4.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 24.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Choice Hotels International Trading Up 0.4 %

CHH stock traded up $0.64 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $143.93. 305,336 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 433,972. The company has a market capitalization of $6.73 billion, a PE ratio of 23.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $145.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $139.49. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a twelve month low of $108.91 and a twelve month high of $157.86.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $389.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $374.24 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Choice Hotels International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.2875 per share. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Choice Hotels International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.