Swedbank AB Raises Position in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR)

Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 6.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 67,548 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,162 shares during the period. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $18,842,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Marriott International by 10.8% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 379 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Marriott International by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 8,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,162,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Marriott International by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 3,290 shares of the company’s stock worth $918,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Haverford Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 1.0% in the third quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 4,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Marriott International by 2.6% during the third quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $500,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. 70.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Marriott International from $238.00 to $261.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Marriott International from $249.00 to $286.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Marriott International from $255.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Marriott International from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Marriott International from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marriott International has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $272.15.

Marriott International Trading Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ:MAR opened at $290.59 on Friday. Marriott International, Inc. has a 12 month low of $204.55 and a 12 month high of $295.45. The business’s 50-day moving average is $282.93 and its 200 day moving average is $258.68. The company has a market capitalization of $80.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.40, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.57.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.31 by ($0.05). Marriott International had a negative return on equity of 177.91% and a net margin of 11.18%. The business had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.11 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Marriott International, Inc. will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Marriott International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. Marriott International’s payout ratio is currently 26.36%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Benjamin T. Breland sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.49, for a total transaction of $137,245.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,286 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,372,384.14. This represents a 3.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Anthony Capuano sold 8,332 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.49, for a total transaction of $2,370,370.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 108,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,827,620.89. The trade was a 7.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 13,815 shares of company stock valued at $3,919,739 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 12.32% of the company’s stock.

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.