State of Wyoming Purchases 688 Shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR)

State of Wyoming grew its position in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 89.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,459 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 688 shares during the period. State of Wyoming’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Marriott International during the 4th quarter worth $580,922,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Marriott International by 50.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,661,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,300,168,000 after purchasing an additional 1,570,144 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marriott International during the fourth quarter worth $165,162,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Marriott International by 17.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,469,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $967,662,000 after purchasing an additional 512,963 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Marriott International by 36,564.5% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 360,779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $100,636,000 after buying an additional 359,795 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MAR. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Marriott International from $295.00 to $240.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Marriott International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $226.00 to $303.00 in a report on Monday, May 12th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of Marriott International from $255.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Melius Research raised Marriott International to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $276.60.

Insider Activity at Marriott International

In other Marriott International news, EVP Benjamin T. Breland sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.21, for a total value of $270,210.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,724 shares in the company, valued at $5,599,832.04. This trade represents a 4.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider William P. Brown sold 12,642 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.63, for a total value of $3,610,934.46. Following the sale, the insider now owns 30,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,831,393.97. This represents a 29.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 32,694 shares of company stock valued at $9,208,342. 10.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Marriott International Stock Performance

Shares of Marriott International stock opened at $267.34 on Wednesday. Marriott International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $204.55 and a 52-week high of $307.52. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $240.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $266.89. The firm has a market cap of $73.22 billion, a PE ratio of 32.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.39.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.25 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.19 billion. Marriott International had a net margin of 9.46% and a negative return on equity of 116.67%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Marriott International, Inc. will post 10.1 EPS for the current year.

Marriott International Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a $0.67 dividend. This is a boost from Marriott International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.52%.

Marriott International Profile

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.