Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) Shares Purchased by E Fund Management Co. Ltd.

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 14,408 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 920 shares during the quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $4,019,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MAR. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Marriott International by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,477,619 shares of the company’s stock worth $412,167,000 after purchasing an additional 32,288 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 4.8% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,024,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $254,613,000 after buying an additional 46,563 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Marriott International by 8.4% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 613,052 shares of the company’s stock valued at $152,399,000 after buying an additional 47,551 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marriott International during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $165,162,000. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its stake in Marriott International by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 566,548 shares of the company’s stock worth $140,844,000 after acquiring an additional 2,723 shares during the period. 70.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MAR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Marriott International from $251.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $289.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Marriott International from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Marriott International from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Marriott International from $285.00 to $277.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Marriott International currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $286.45.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marriott International

In other Marriott International news, EVP Rena Hozore Reiss sold 3,500 shares of Marriott International stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.65, for a total value of $1,003,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,733 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,089,714.45. The trade was a 12.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider William P. Brown sold 12,642 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.63, for a total transaction of $3,610,934.46. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,919 shares in the company, valued at $8,831,393.97. This trade represents a 29.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 31,694 shares of company stock worth $8,938,132 in the last ninety days. 12.32% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Marriott International Trading Down 3.1 %

MAR opened at $262.63 on Friday. Marriott International, Inc. has a twelve month low of $204.55 and a twelve month high of $307.52. The firm has a market cap of $72.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.57, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $281.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $268.37.

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

Marriott International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.29%.

Marriott International Company 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.