Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. Takes $45,000 Position in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 4.4% in the third quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,162,038 shares of the company’s stock valued at $264,871,000 after purchasing an additional 91,351 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Choice Hotels International in the fourth quarter valued at $24,000,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 8.3% in the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,015,844 shares of the company’s stock valued at $124,451,000 after purchasing an additional 78,115 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC increased its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 144.9% in the third quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 33,207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,068,000 after purchasing an additional 19,649 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 34.7% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 39,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,844,000 after purchasing an additional 10,193 shares during the period. 65.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CHH. Barclays decreased their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $122.00 to $114.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Truist Financial increased their price target on Choice Hotels International from $142.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Robert W. Baird reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $138.00 price target on shares of Choice Hotels International in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Choice Hotels International from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $96.00 to $156.00 in a report on Monday, March 11th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Choice Hotels International from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $130.90.

Choice Hotels International Stock Performance

Shares of CHH opened at $116.35 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 30.02, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $120.80 and a 200-day moving average of $117.28. The company has a market cap of $5.78 billion, a PE ratio of 22.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.21. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a one year low of $108.91 and a one year high of $136.02.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $358.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $369.44 million. Choice Hotels International had a return on equity of 594.23% and a net margin of 16.74%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 2nd were given a $0.2875 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 1st. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. Choice Hotels International’s payout ratio is 22.73%.

Choice Hotels International Profile

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.