Short Interest in InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (NYSE:IHG) Expands By 9.5%

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (NYSE:IHG) saw a significant growth in short interest in October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totalling 517,000 shares, a growth of 9.5% from the September 30th total of 472,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 193,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days. Currently, 0.3% of the shares of the company are short sold.

InterContinental Hotels Group Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE IHG traded down $1.33 during trading on Thursday, hitting $111.47. The company had a trading volume of 103,403 shares, compared to its average volume of 176,775. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.32. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $103.49. InterContinental Hotels Group has a fifty-two week low of $71.01 and a fifty-two week high of $115.25.

InterContinental Hotels Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a Semi-Annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were issued a dividend of $0.532 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is a boost from InterContinental Hotels Group’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $0.30. InterContinental Hotels Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.63%.

Institutional Trading of InterContinental Hotels Group

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in IHG. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of InterContinental Hotels Group by 46.9% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 332 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of InterContinental Hotels Group in the 2nd quarter worth $36,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of InterContinental Hotels Group during the 1st quarter worth $48,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of InterContinental Hotels Group by 65.2% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in InterContinental Hotels Group during the second quarter worth about $50,000. 15.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded InterContinental Hotels Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

InterContinental Hotels Group Company Profile

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC owns, manages, franchises, and leases hotels in the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Greater China. The company operates hotels under the Six Senses, Regent, InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Vignette Collection, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, Hotel Indigo, voco, HUALUXE, Crowne Plaza, Iberostar Beachfront Resorts, EVEN, Holiday Inn Express, Holiday Inn, Garner, avid hotels, Atwell Suites, Staybridge Suites, Iberostar Beachfront Resorts, Holiday Inn Club Vacations, and Candlewood Suites brand names.