SG Americas Securities LLC Acquires 4,328 Shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) by 492.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,207 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,328 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Choice Hotels International were worth $691,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 66.2% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 30.3% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 370 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 55.8% during the 4th quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 430 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ raised its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 836.2% during the 4th quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Choice Hotels International during the 4th quarter valued at about $62,000. Institutional investors own 65.57% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CHH. Wall Street Zen cut Choice Hotels International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $138.00 to $137.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $124.00 to $115.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Susquehanna set a $140.00 price objective on Choice Hotels International and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three 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 target price of $132.15.

Choice Hotels International Stock Performance

CHH opened at $122.76 on Friday. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $116.13 and a 52-week high of $157.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.70 billion, a PE ratio of 18.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $126.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $135.82.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.38 by ($0.04). Choice Hotels International had a net margin of 19.75% and a negative return on equity of 377.51%. The business had revenue of $332.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $348.52 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.28 earnings per share. Choice Hotels International’s quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 7.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Choice Hotels International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 1st will be given a dividend of $0.2875 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 1st. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. Choice Hotels International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.56%.

Insider Activity at Choice Hotels International

In other Choice Hotels International news, Director Ervin R. Shames sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.56, for a total value of $259,120.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 52,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,764,586.72. The trade was a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 23.78% 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.