Plato Investment Management Ltd Takes Position in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR)

Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MAR. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position in Marriott International by 494.4% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 107 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Marriott International in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Marriott International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. ORG Partners LLC boosted its position in Marriott International by 158.5% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 137 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Marriott International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI upgraded Marriott International from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Marriott International from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Marriott International from $285.00 to $277.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Argus upped their price objective on Marriott International from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on Marriott International from $246.00 to $293.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marriott International presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.45.

Marriott International Stock Performance

NASDAQ MAR opened at $271.10 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $282.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $268.41. Marriott International, Inc. has a one year low of $204.55 and a one year high of $307.52. The company has a market cap of $74.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.58.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $2.45 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Marriott International, Inc. will post 10.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marriott International Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 27th. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.29%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marriott International news, insider William P. Brown sold 12,642 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.63, for a total value of $3,610,934.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,831,393.97. This trade represents a 29.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Kathleen K. Oberg sold 14,498 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.07, for a total value of $4,031,458.86. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 14,282 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,971,395.74. This represents a 50.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 31,694 shares of company stock valued at $8,938,132 in the last three months. 12.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.