Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation (NYSE:VAC) Short Interest Up 12,262.6% in July

Key Points

• Short interest in Marriott Vacations Worldwide surged by 12,262.6% in July, reaching a total of 2,250,000 shares from 18,200 shares in June, with 7.1% of the company's shares now short sold.
• Marriott's stock was reported at $73.53, down 1.3%, while analysts have mixed ratings, with a consensus price target of $92.25.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.79 per share, representing an annualized yield of 4.3% and a payout ratio of approximately 53.92%.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation (NYSE:VAC - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,250,000 shares, anincreaseof12,262.6% from the June 30th total of 18,200 shares. Currently,7.1% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 639,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.5 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 639,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.5 days. Currently,7.1% of the company's stock are sold short.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Christian Asmar bought 412,449 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $67.61 per share, with a total value of $27,885,676.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,708,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $250,727,155.13. This represents a 12.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marriott Vacations Worldwide

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $365,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 35.2% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 595 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 90.6% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 427 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 136.5% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 395 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the period. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 3,827 shares of the company's stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the period. 89.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VAC traded down $1.95 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $72.41. 289,510 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 565,905. The company has a quick ratio of 2.58, a current ratio of 3.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. Marriott Vacations Worldwide has a 12 month low of $49.22 and a 12 month high of $100.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.49. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $74.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $71.43.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide (NYSE:VAC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $1.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. Marriott Vacations Worldwide had a return on equity of 10.43% and a net margin of 4.57%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.10 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Marriott Vacations Worldwide will post 6.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were paid a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 23rd. Marriott Vacations Worldwide's dividend payout ratio is currently 53.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VAC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays cut their price objective on Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $97.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $103.00 to $101.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Mizuho dropped their price target on Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $112.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating on shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $48.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $91.57.

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.