Aurora Investment Managers LLC. Trims Position in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

Aurora Investment Managers LLC. lowered its stake in shares of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 11,939 shares of the company’s stock after selling 526 shares during the period. Aurora Investment Managers LLC.’s holdings in Choice Hotels International were worth $1,695,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its position in Choice Hotels International by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 843 shares of the company’s stock worth $110,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Choice Hotels International by 4.7% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,267 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Malaga Cove Capital LLC grew its position in Choice Hotels International by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter. Malaga Cove Capital LLC now owns 2,034 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Choice Hotels International by 81.4% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont raised its position in Choice Hotels International by 34.0% during the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 1,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.57% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Choice Hotels International news, CEO Patrick Pacious sold 26,816 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were 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 directly owns 404,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,551,123.54. This trade represents a 6.21 % 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 currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CHH. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Choice Hotels International in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $133.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $134.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Choice Hotels International from $122.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Barclays lifted their price target 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $129.00 price objective (down previously from $145.00) on shares of Choice Hotels International in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Choice Hotels International has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $133.27.

Choice Hotels International Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of CHH opened at $141.82 on Tuesday. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $108.91 and a 12-month high of $153.81. The stock has a market cap of $6.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.17, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50-day moving average of $144.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $134.66.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $428.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $432.62 million. Choice Hotels International had a negative return on equity of 659.01% and a net margin of 16.27%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.82 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 6.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Choice Hotels International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.2875 per share. This represents a $1.15 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. Choice Hotels International’s 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.