Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. Takes Position in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH)

Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,988 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $795,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Choice Hotels International by 66.2% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 256 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. acquired a new position in Choice Hotels International during the first quarter worth $35,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in Choice Hotels International by 64.7% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 275 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in Choice Hotels International by 30.3% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 370 shares of the company's stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Choice Hotels International during the fourth quarter worth $62,000. 65.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CHH has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays increased their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $111.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Redburn Atlantic raised Choice Hotels International from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $132.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $121.00 price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Choice Hotels International in a report on Monday, June 23rd. They set an "underweight" rating and a $124.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Choice Hotels International from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 19th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Choice Hotels International currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $134.38.

Insider Activity at Choice Hotels International

In related news, EVP Dominic Dragisich sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.54, for a total value of $642,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 70,881 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,111,043.74. This represents a 6.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Ervin R. Shames sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.56, for a total transaction of $259,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 52,212 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,764,586.72. This represents a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,565,395 over the last quarter. Insiders own 23.78% of the company's stock.

Choice Hotels International Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Choice Hotels International stock traded up $0.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $131.28. 301,106 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 383,295. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $116.20 and a fifty-two week high of $157.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $128.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $133.90.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.38 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $332.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $348.52 million. Choice Hotels International had a negative return on equity of 377.51% and a net margin of 19.75%. The company's quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.28 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Choice Hotels International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 1st were paid a $0.2875 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 1st. This represents a $1.15 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. Choice Hotels International's payout ratio is currently 17.56%.

Choice Hotels International Company 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.