Trexquant Investment LP Buys New Shares in Choice Hotels International, Inc. $CHH

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP has invested $2.23 million in Choice Hotels International, acquiring 16,814 shares as per its latest SEC filing.
• Several other institutional investors have also increased their stakes in Choice Hotels, growing the total institutional ownership to 65.57% of the company.
• Choice Hotels reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, slightly beating analysts' expectations, but its revenue of $426.44 million fell short of projections.

Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE:CHH - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 16,814 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,233,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 66.2% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 256 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. bought a new stake in shares of Choice Hotels International in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 64.7% in the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 275 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 1,694.6% in the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 664 shares of the company's stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its position in shares of Choice Hotels International by 133.2% in the 1st quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 1,026 shares of the company's stock worth $136,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.57% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Choice Hotels International

In related news, EVP Dominic Dragisich sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.45, for a total transaction of $341,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 68,381 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,330,587.45. This represents a 3.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,647,400. Corporate insiders own 23.78% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CHH has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International from $144.00 to $128.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $121.00 price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Choice Hotels International in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. They set an "underweight" rating and a $124.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International from $121.00 to $117.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Choice Hotels International from $160.00 to $149.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $133.38.

Choice Hotels International Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE CHH traded down $1.49 on Wednesday, hitting $112.48. The stock had a trading volume of 589,296 shares, compared to its average volume of 374,673. Choice Hotels International, Inc. has a one year low of $111.42 and a one year high of $157.86. The stock has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.90. The company's 50-day moving average is $125.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $127.90.

Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $426.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $430.13 million. Choice Hotels International had a net margin of 19.52% and a negative return on equity of 575.73%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Choice Hotels International, Inc. will post 7.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Choice Hotels International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 16th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be paid a $0.2875 dividend. This represents a $1.15 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Choice Hotels International's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.69%.

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.