Marriott International, Inc. $MAR Position Trimmed by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 2.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 243,345 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,616 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $63,377,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AlphaQuest LLC grew its stake in Marriott International by 2,750.0% in the second quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 114 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marriott International in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Marriott International in the second quarter worth approximately $37,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Marriott International during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Quaker Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marriott International by 203.4% in the 2nd quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.70% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Rena Hozore Reiss sold 5,483 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $287.11, for a total value of $1,574,224.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 39,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,300,649.60. This trade represents a 12.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider William P. Brown sold 6,666 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.04, for a total transaction of $1,866,746.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 11,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,080,440. This trade represents a 37.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 88,289 shares of company stock valued at $25,669,425 in the last ninety days. 10.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on Marriott International from $329.00 to $369.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Marriott International in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $329.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Marriott International in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Marriott International from $294.00 to $323.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $276.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $316.19.

Marriott International Price Performance

NASDAQ MAR opened at $318.42 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $311.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $284.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.13. Marriott International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $205.40 and a 52-week high of $331.09.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.38 by $0.09. Marriott International had a net margin of 10.07% and a negative return on equity of 89.29%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.46 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Marriott International, Inc. will post 10.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marriott International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 20th were issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 20th. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.30%.

About Marriott International

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.