Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Has $763,000 Position in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 9.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,737 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $763,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Marriott International in the fourth quarter worth about $165,162,000. PointState Capital LP acquired a new position in Marriott International in the third quarter worth about $98,249,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Marriott International by 36,564.5% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 360,779 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,636,000 after purchasing an additional 359,795 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position 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 worth $106,339,000 after purchasing an additional 294,898 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its position in Marriott International by 35,705.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 241,686 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,681,000 after purchasing an additional 241,011 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on MAR. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Marriott International from $251.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $280.00 to $314.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Marriott International from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $251.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Argus raised their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marriott International presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $286.45.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Kathleen K. Oberg sold 14,498 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.07, for a total transaction of $4,031,458.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 14,282 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,971,395.74. This represents a 50.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Rena Hozore Reiss sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.65, for a total transaction of $1,003,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,733 shares in the company, valued at $7,089,714.45. This represents a 12.40 % 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 quarter. Company insiders own 12.32% of the company’s stock.

Marriott International Stock Performance

Shares of Marriott International stock opened at $243.81 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $279.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $269.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.30, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.58. Marriott International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $204.55 and a 52 week high of $307.52.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $2.45 earnings per share 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, research analysts forecast that Marriott International, Inc. will post 10.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marriott International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 yield of 1.03%. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.29%.

About Marriott International

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.