Davis R M Inc. Purchases Shares of 830 Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR)

Davis R M Inc. purchased a new stake in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bell Investment Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Marriott International by 112.2% in the fourth quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of Marriott International by 494.4% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 107 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marriott International in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marriott International in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Marriott International in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $287.00 to $283.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Marriott International from $251.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Argus raised their price target on shares of Marriott International from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Marriott International from $251.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $286.45.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Kathleen K. Oberg sold 14,498 shares of Marriott International stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.07, for a total transaction of $4,031,458.86. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 14,282 shares in the company, valued at $3,971,395.74. This trade represents a 50.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 1,054 shares of Marriott International stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.48, for a total transaction of $292,463.92. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,262,811.48. This represents a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,694 shares of company stock worth $8,938,132 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 12.32% of the company’s stock.

Marriott International Trading Down 1.0 %

MAR opened at $243.81 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $279.75 and its 200-day moving average is $269.47. Marriott International, Inc. has a 1-year low of $204.55 and a 1-year high of $307.52. The company has a market cap of $67.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.30, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.58.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.08. Marriott International had a net margin of 9.46% and a negative return on equity of 116.67%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Marriott International, Inc. will post 10.1 EPS for the current year.

Marriott International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. Marriott International’s payout ratio is currently 30.29%.

About Marriott International

Marriott International, Inc engages in operating, franchising, and licensing hotel, residential, timeshare, and other lodging properties worldwide. It operates its properties under the JW Marriott, The Ritz-Carlton, The Luxury Collection, W Hotels, St. Regis, EDITION, Bvlgari, Marriott Hotels, Sheraton, Westin, Autograph Collection, Renaissance Hotels, Le Méridien, Delta Hotels by Marriott, Tribute Portfolio, Gaylord Hotels, Design Hotels, Marriott Executive Apartments, Apartments by Marriott Bonvoy, Courtyard by Marriott, Fairfield by Marriott, Residence Inn by Marriott, SpringHill Suites by Marriott, Four Points by Sheraton, TownePlace Suites by Marriott, Aloft Hotels, AC Hotels by Marriott, Moxy Hotels, Element Hotels, Protea Hotels by Marriott, City Express by Marriott, and St.