Choice Hotels Announces Special Cash Dividend

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Jul 26, 2012, 04:21 ET

SILVER SPRING, Md., July 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH) (the "Company") announced today that the Company's Board of Directors has declared a special cash dividend in the amount of $10.41 per share, resulting in an aggregate payment amount of approximately $600 million. The record date for the special cash dividend is August 20, 2012 and the special cash dividend will be paid on August 23, 2012. The Company has been informed by the New York Stock Exchange that, in accordance with its rules, the ex-dividend date is expected to be August 24, 2012. Accordingly, stockholders who sell their shares on or before the payment date will not be entitled to receive the special cash dividend. The special cash dividend is being paid with the proceeds from the Company's recent offering of 5.750% senior notes and from its new senior secured credit facility.

"The special dividend announced today reflects management's and our board's confidence in the future of our brands and their substantial cash generating capabilities," said Stephen P. Joyce, president and chief executive officer. "In this unprecedented and prolonged period of historically low interest rates, this capital structure transaction and significant return to our shareholders is both the appropriate corporate finance decision and the right strategic action for Choice. One of our long stated goals is to deliver increasing value to our shareholders in the most efficient and effective way possible. This transaction achieves this objective in a meaningful way, lowering our overall cost of capital without affecting our ability to grow the Company. After this transaction, we will continue to have significant financial resources to fund our business operations and exploit potential and actionable business development and growth opportunities in the near term."

About Choice Hotels
Choice Hotels International, Inc. franchises more than 6,100 hotels, representing more than 495,000 rooms, in the United States and more than 30 other countries and territories. As of March 31, 2012, more than 350 hotels were under construction, awaiting conversion or approved for development in the United States, representing more than 30,000 rooms, and approximately 80 hotels, representing approximately 7,000 rooms, were under construction, awaiting conversion or approved for development in approximately 20 other countries and territories. The company's Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge and Rodeway Inn brands serve guests worldwide. In addition, via its Ascend Hotel Collection membership program, travelers in the United States, Canada, Europe, Central America and the Caribbean have upscale lodging options at member hotels.

Additional corporate information may be found on the Choice Hotels International, Inc. web site, which may be accessed at www.choicehotels.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
Certain matters discussed in this press release constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Generally, our use of words such as "expect," "estimate," "believe," "anticipate," "will," "forecast," "plan"," project," "assume" or similar words of futurity identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current beliefs, assumptions and expectations regarding future events, which in turn are based on information currently available to management. Such statements may relate to projections of the company's revenue, earnings and other financial and operational measures, company debt levels, ability to repay outstanding indebtedness, payment of dividends, and future operations, among other matters. We caution you not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements do not guarantee future performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors.

Several factors could cause actual results, performance or achievements of the company to differ materially from those expressed in or contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Such risks include, but are not limited to, changes to general, domestic and foreign economic conditions; operating risks common in the lodging and franchising industries; changes to the desirability of our brands as viewed by hotel operators and customers; changes to the terms or termination of our contracts with franchisees; our ability to keep pace with improvements in technology utilized for reservations systems and other operating systems; fluctuations in the supply and demand for hotels rooms; and our ability to manage effectively our indebtedness. These and other risk factors are discussed in detail in the Risk Factors section of the company's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 29, 2012 and our quarterly reports filed on Form 10-Q. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Choice Hotels, Choice Hotels International, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn and Ascend Collectionare proprietary trademarks and service marks of Choice Hotels International.

SOURCE Choice Hotels International, Inc.