D.A. Davidson & CO. Reduces Holdings in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR)

D.A. Davidson & CO. cut its position in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 11,354 shares of the company’s stock after selling 973 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $2,823,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bangor Savings Bank raised its position in shares of Marriott International by 131.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Marriott International in the second quarter valued at $26,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Marriott International during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Silvant Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marriott International in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marriott International in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on MAR. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Marriott International from $268.00 to $250.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Marriott International from $258.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Marriott International from $262.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Marriott International from $267.00 to $244.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $260.20.

Marriott International Trading Up 1.2 %

Marriott International stock opened at $289.09 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $266.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $245.07. The stock has a market cap of $80.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.24, a PEG ratio of 5.62 and a beta of 1.58. Marriott International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $200.94 and a 52 week high of $290.43.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by ($0.05). Marriott International had a negative return on equity of 177.91% and a net margin of 11.18%. The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.11 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Marriott International, Inc. will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marriott International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be issued a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 21st. Marriott International’s payout ratio is 26.36%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider William P. Brown sold 1,707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.30, for a total transaction of $485,300.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,560,791.10. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Benjamin T. Breland sold 500 shares of Marriott International stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.49, for a total transaction of $137,245.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,286 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,372,384.14. This trade represents a 3.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 13,815 shares of company stock worth $3,919,739. Corporate insiders own 12.32% of the company’s stock.

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.