Morgan Stanley Increases Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) Price Target to $141.00

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH) had its target price increased by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $134.00 to $141.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price indicates a potential downside of 2.23% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on CHH. UBS Group cut their price target on Choice Hotels International from $126.00 to $125.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com upgraded Choice Hotels International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Choice Hotels International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Choice Hotels International from $105.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Choice Hotels International from $113.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $130.00.

Choice Hotels International Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of CHH stock opened at $144.22 on Wednesday. Choice Hotels International has a fifty-two week low of $108.91 and a fifty-two week high of $149.75. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $133.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $125.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 177.75, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.76 billion, a PE ratio of 27.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 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 the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $432.62 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.82 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Choice Hotels International will post 6.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Patrick Pacious sold 10,025 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.37, for a total value of $1,206,709.25. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 404,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,709,646.42. This represents a 2.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dominic Dragisich sold 9,138 shares of Choice Hotels International stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.88, for a total transaction of $1,232,533.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,240,493.92. This trade represents a 11.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 71,437 shares of company stock worth $9,788,980. Company insiders own 24.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Choice Hotels International

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Choice Hotels International by 12.9% in the third 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 last quarter. AGF Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 0.5% in the second quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 20,940 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,492,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its stake in Choice Hotels International by 4.7% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Aurora Investment Managers LLC. lifted its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Aurora Investment Managers LLC. now owns 12,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,624,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 144.4% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 198 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. 65.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.