Choice Hotels International, Inc.: Takeaways from NYC Investor Meetings

J.P. Morgan hosted Choice Hotels International's (CHH US, Neutral) new CEO Dominic Dragisich, CFO Scott Oaksmith, and Sr. Director of Investor Relations Allie Summers in New York City for investor meetings. Management is focused on returning CHH to its roots as a simple, franchise-led business and driving EBITDA growth through new unit growth, RevPAR, and ancillary fees. CHH outlined three strategic priorities: (1) return to positive U.S. net unit growth in FY26, expected to comprise the bulk of the company's global 1.5% NUG guide; (2) strengthen its commercial engine to narrow or close the RevPAR index gap — CHH has spent $60m over the past 24 months on a new SMB portal, RFP/group tool, and improved loyalty program, with revenue mix now 40% business/60% leisure vs. ~20%/80% five years ago, and management targets ~250bps of churn improvement in 2026 (from FY25's elevated 7% to ~4%), seeing a medium-term path to 2-4% domestic NUG;