Applied Finance Capital Management LLC Grows Position in Marriott International, Inc. $MAR

Key Points

• Applied Finance Capital Management more than doubled its stake in Marriott International in the fourth quarter, increasing holdings by 104.9% to 11,078 shares valued at about $3.44 million.
• Marriott reported better-than-expected EPS of $2.72 for the quarter, though revenue came in far below analyst expectations at $1.81 billion. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.73 per share from $0.67.
• Wall Street sentiment remains mixed but constructive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average target price of $376.13. Meanwhile, insiders sold shares over the last 90 days, including notable sales by Rajeev Menon and Drew Pinto.

Applied Finance Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR - Free Report) by 104.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,078 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 5,671 shares during the period. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC's holdings in Marriott International were worth $3,437,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MAR. National Pension Service boosted its position in shares of Marriott International by 1.6% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 603,431 shares of the company's stock worth $157,158,000 after buying an additional 9,530 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Marriott International by 9.3% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,465,420 shares of the company's stock valued at $381,654,000 after buying an additional 124,759 shares in the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd acquired a new position in Marriott International during the third quarter worth about $858,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ grew its holdings in Marriott International by 5.8% during the third 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 period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Marriott International by 12.0% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 386,638 shares of the company's stock worth $100,696,000 after acquiring an additional 41,547 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.70% of the company's stock.

Marriott International Stock Performance

NASDAQ MAR opened at $353.17 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $343.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $323.01. Marriott International, Inc. has a twelve month low of $253.55 and a twelve month high of $380.00. The stock has a market cap of $93.13 billion, a PE ratio of 37.06, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.11.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.59 billion. Marriott International had a net margin of 9.72% and a negative return on equity of 80.97%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.32 earnings per share. Marriott International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.380-11.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.990-3.060 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Marriott International, Inc. will post 11.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marriott International Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is a positive change from Marriott International's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 22nd. Marriott International's payout ratio is 28.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Rajeev Menon sold 3,492 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.00, for a total transaction of $1,236,168.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 6,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,124,000. This represents a 36.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Drew Pinto sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $359.81, for a total transaction of $1,439,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,957,998.01. The trade was a 32.73% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 93,028 shares of company stock worth $33,377,271 in the last ninety days. 11.43% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MAR. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Marriott International in a research report on Monday. Evercore increased their target price on Marriott International from $320.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays increased their target price on Marriott International from $372.00 to $376.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Mizuho increased their target price on Marriott International from $343.00 to $384.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on Marriott International from $283.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $376.13.

Marriott International 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.