Marriott International Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:MAR)

Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 38,222 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 1,536% compared to the average volume of 2,336 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MAR. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Marriott International from $278.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Marriott International from $302.00 to $296.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $280.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Marriott International in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $329.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Marriott International from $287.00 to $285.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Marriott International has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $290.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marriott International

In other news, insider Deborah Marriott Harrison sold 70,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.63, for a total value of $20,414,100.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 175,210 shares in the company, valued at $51,096,492.30. This represents a 28.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Peggy Roe sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.12, for a total transaction of $584,240.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 17,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,102,167.92. This trade represents a 10.27% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 86,672 shares of company stock worth $25,174,655. 10.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marriott International

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Marriott International by 66.9% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 12,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,311,000 after buying an additional 5,094 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Marriott International by 186.3% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 7,936 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,067,000 after purchasing an additional 5,164 shares in the last quarter. Investment Research Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marriott International during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $371,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in Marriott International by 25.6% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 242,432 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,139,000 after buying an additional 49,423 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new position in Marriott International during the third quarter worth $10,754,000. 70.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marriott International Price Performance

Shares of Marriott International stock traded down $3.98 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $283.84. 2,035,686 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,627,346. The stock has a market cap of $76.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.15. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $278.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $271.30. Marriott International has a 12-month low of $205.40 and a 12-month high of $309.42.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.46 billion. Marriott International had a negative return on equity of 89.29% and a net margin of 10.07%.Marriott International has set its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.540-2.620 EPS and its FY 2025 guidance at 9.980-10.060 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Marriott International will post 10.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Marriott International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. Marriott International’s payout ratio is currently 28.30%.

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.