Marriott Vacations Worldwide Co. (NYSE:VAC) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Co. (NYSE:VAC - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,800,000 shares, a growth of 20.0% from the March 31st total of 1,500,000 shares. Approximately 5.7% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 576,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Trading Up 10.4 %

VAC traded up $6.04 during trading on Thursday, reaching $64.24. 990,902 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 446,693. The company's fifty day moving average price is $60.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.22 billion, a PE ratio of 12.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.42. Marriott Vacations Worldwide has a fifty-two week low of $49.22 and a fifty-two week high of $102.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19, a quick ratio of 2.86 and a current ratio of 3.53.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide (NYSE:VAC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. Marriott Vacations Worldwide had a return on equity of 10.89% and a net margin of 4.20%. The firm's revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.80 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Marriott Vacations Worldwide will post 6.23 EPS for the current year.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Marriott Vacations Worldwide's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on VAC shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $112.00 to $108.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $116.00 to $97.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $78.00 to $48.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price target on Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $142.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marriott Vacations Worldwide currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $94.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Stephanie Sobeck Butera purchased 650 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $71.66 per share, for a total transaction of $46,579.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 8,770 shares of the company's stock, valued at $628,458.20. This trade represents a 8.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marriott Vacations Worldwide

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VAC. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 136.5% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 395 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Investment Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide in the first quarter valued at about $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 130.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 533 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new position in Marriott Vacations Worldwide during the fourth quarter worth $50,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 35.2% in the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 595 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.52% of the company's stock.

About Marriott Vacations Worldwide

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation, a vacation company, develops, markets, sells, and manages vacation ownership and related businesses, products, and services in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Vacation Ownership and Exchange & Third-Party Management.