Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) Sets New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $356.00 to $372.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Marriott International traded as high as $373.33 and last traded at $375.2560, with a volume of 125532 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $362.42.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on MAR. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Marriott International from $283.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Marriott International from $353.00 to $403.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Marriott International from $355.00 to $398.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Marriott International from $323.00 to $356.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Marriott International from $331.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marriott International has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $353.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Drew Pinto sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.81, for a total value of $1,439,240.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 8,221 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,957,998.01. This trade represents a 32.73% 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, insider William P. Brown sold 9,456 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.25, for a total value of $3,387,612.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 11,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,940,750. This trade represents a 46.23% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 95,540 shares of company stock valued at $34,274,055. 11.43% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marriott International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. National Pension Service grew its holdings in Marriott International by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 603,431 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,158,000 after buying an additional 9,530 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Marriott International by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,465,420 shares of the company’s stock worth $381,654,000 after acquiring an additional 124,759 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd bought a new stake in Marriott International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $858,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ increased its stake in Marriott International by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 73,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,210,000 after acquiring an additional 4,067 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in Marriott International by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 572,367 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,067,000 after acquiring an additional 14,898 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.70% of the company’s stock.

Marriott International Trading Up 3.8%

The firm has a market cap of $99.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $338.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $310.12.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.61 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $6.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.67 billion. Marriott International had a net margin of 9.93% and a negative return on equity of 84.23%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.45 EPS. Marriott International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.320-11.570 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.500-2.550 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Marriott International, Inc. will post 10.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marriott International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 26th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Marriott International’s payout ratio is presently 28.24%.

Marriott International Company Profile

Marriott International is a global lodging company that develops, manages and franchises a broad portfolio of hotels and related lodging facilities. Its core activities include hotel and resort management, franchise operations, property development and the provision of centralized services such as reservations, marketing and loyalty program management. The company’s brand architecture spans market segments from luxury and premium to select-service and extended-stay, enabling it to serve a wide range of business and leisure travelers as well as corporate and group customers.

The company traces its roots to the hospitality business founded by J.