Wyndham Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:WH) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $94.67

Key Points

• Analysts remain moderately bullish: Nine of 14 brokerages rate Wyndham Hotels & Resorts a buy, while five recommend holding the stock. The consensus 12-month price target is $94.67 versus a recent share price of $75.15.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Wyndham reported adjusted earnings of $1.43 per share and revenue of $410 million, topping analyst estimates, with revenue up 7.3% year over year.
• Shareholder returns are a focus: The company authorized a $400 million stock-repurchase program, equivalent to up to 7.6% of shares outstanding, and pays a quarterly dividend of $0.43, representing a 2.3% annualized yield.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:WH - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $94.67.

A number of research firms have commented on WH. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Wyndham Hotels & Resorts from $97.00 to $94.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Wyndham Hotels & Resorts from $100.00 to $97.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Wyndham Hotels & Resorts from $90.00 to $80.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings cut Wyndham Hotels & Resorts from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Wyndham Hotels & Resorts from $98.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Price Performance

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts stock opened at $75.15 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.69, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market cap of $5.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.64. The stock's 50 day moving average is $72.38 and its 200 day moving average is $77.86. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts has a one year low of $66.87 and a one year high of $90.35.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:WH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $410.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $408.99 million. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts had a net margin of 13.97% and a return on equity of 77.43%. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts's revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Wyndham Hotels & Resorts will post 4.88 EPS for the current year.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, September 29th that permits the company to repurchase $400 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 7.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts's payout ratio is 63.94%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Geoffrey Ballotti sold 19,295 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.69, for a total transaction of $1,421,848.55. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 550,457 shares in the company, valued at $40,563,176.33. This trade represents a 3.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.33% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Wyndham Hotels & Resorts by 15.2% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the company's stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Wyndham Hotels & Resorts by 55.4% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 586 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Wyndham Hotels & Resorts by 14.2% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,858 shares of the company's stock valued at $156,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Wyndham Hotels & Resorts by 1.7% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 18,153 shares of the company's stock worth $1,475,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in shares of Wyndham Hotels & Resorts by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 15,472 shares of the company's stock worth $1,257,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. 93.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Company Profile

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc is a global hotel franchising company that operates an asset-light lodging business. Rather than owning and managing most of its hotels, the company licenses its brands and provides franchisees with support in areas such as marketing, reservations, technology, training and operational standards.

Its portfolio includes a range of economy, midscale and upscale hotel brands, including Super 8, Days Inn, Ramada, La Quinta, Microtel, Baymont, Wingate, AmericInn, Wyndham, Wyndham Garden, Registry Collection Hotels and ECHO Suites Extended Stay by Wyndham.

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