Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Reduces Position in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR)

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund reduced its position in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,742 shares of the company’s stock after selling 270 shares during the quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $5,507,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MAR. PointState Capital LP bought a new stake in Marriott International in the third quarter valued at about $98,249,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Marriott International by 341.6% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 381,226 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,339,000 after buying an additional 294,898 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 629.7% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 134,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,554,000 after purchasing an additional 116,477 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 78.5% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 198,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,425,000 after purchasing an additional 87,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP bought a new position in shares of Marriott International during the third quarter valued at approximately $18,769,000. 70.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marriott International

In other news, CFO Kathleen K. Oberg sold 14,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were 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 directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 1,054 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.48, for a total transaction of $292,463.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,551 shares in the company, valued at $1,262,811.48. This trade represents a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,694 shares of company stock valued at $8,938,132. Corporate insiders own 10.07% of the company’s stock.

Marriott International Price Performance

MAR opened at $282.16 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $77.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.57. Marriott International, Inc. has a 1-year low of $204.55 and a 1-year high of $307.52. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $283.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $266.41.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.08. Marriott International had a negative return on equity of 116.67% and a net margin of 9.46%. Equities analysts expect that Marriott International, Inc. will post 10.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marriott International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MAR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Marriott International from $258.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI raised Marriott International from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Marriott International from $280.00 to $314.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Marriott International from $285.00 to $277.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Marriott International from $255.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marriott International has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $284.05.

Marriott International Company 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.