LVW Advisors LLC Cuts Stake in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

LVW Advisors LLC cut its stake in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,862 shares of the company’s stock after selling 176 shares during the quarter. LVW Advisors LLC’s holdings in Choice Hotels International were worth $832,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Choice Hotels International by 81.4% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Choice Hotels International during the third quarter valued at about $55,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Choice Hotels International during the third quarter valued at about $63,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Choice Hotels International by 12.9% during the third quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 843 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont grew its stake in shares of Choice Hotels International by 34.0% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 1,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $148,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. 65.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Choice Hotels International from $118.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Choice Hotels International from $138.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Choice Hotels International from $150.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Truist Financial raised their target price on Choice Hotels International from $134.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Choice Hotels International from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $133.27.

Choice Hotels International Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE CHH opened at $141.82 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $144.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $134.49. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $108.91 and a 52-week high of $153.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.24.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $428.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $432.62 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. Choice Hotels International’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 6.84 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a $0.2875 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.15 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Patrick Pacious sold 26,816 shares of Choice Hotels International stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.69, for a total transaction of $3,880,007.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 404,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,551,123.54. The trade was a 6.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 24.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.