Marriott International, Inc. $MAR Stock Purchased by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its stake in shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 13.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,339 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,592 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $4,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Marriott International by 2.9% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,644,773 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,574,256,000 after acquiring an additional 272,044 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Marriott International by 0.8% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 727,472 shares of the company’s stock worth $237,893,000 after purchasing an additional 5,530 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its position in Marriott International by 5.9% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 669,398 shares of the company’s stock worth $218,940,000 after purchasing an additional 37,080 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its position in Marriott International by 5.9% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 664,123 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,209,000 after purchasing an additional 36,765 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in Marriott International by 15.3% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 470,593 shares of the company’s stock valued at $174,311,000 after purchasing an additional 62,529 shares in the last quarter. 70.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Marriott International news, EVP Rena Reiss sold 4,969 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.32, for a total transaction of $2,103,477.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 38,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,489,583.96. This represents a 11.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Benjamin Breland sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $423.32, for a total transaction of $1,058,300.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 23,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,116,924.68. This represents a 9.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 90,545 shares of company stock worth $37,606,415. 11.43% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Marriott International Stock Down 1.1%

MAR opened at $424.66 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $109.35 billion, a PE ratio of 42.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.15. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $373.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $360.25. Marriott International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $280.99 and a fifty-two week high of $433.30.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 2nd. The company reported $3.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.18. Marriott International had a negative return on equity of 69.94% and a net margin of 9.68%. The company had revenue of $7 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.47 earnings per share. Marriott International’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Marriott International, Inc. will post 12.10 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marriott International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Marriott International from $384.00 to $403.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. TD Cowen raised Marriott International to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Erste Group Bank started coverage on Marriott International in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. UBS Group lowered their target price on Marriott International from $412.00 to $395.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, China Intl Cap upgraded shares of Marriott International to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $399.04.

Marriott International Company Profile

Marriott International is a global lodging company that manages, franchises, and licenses hotels, resorts, and other accommodations. Its portfolio spans luxury, premium, select-service, and extended-stay brands, including The Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, W Hotels, Marriott, Sheraton, Courtyard, Residence Inn, and Moxy. The company traces its origins to a root beer stand opened by J. Willard and Alice Marriott in Washington, D.C., in 1927. It entered the lodging business in the 1950s and is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland.