Marriott International Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:MAR)

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on MAR. Barclays raised their price objective on Marriott International from $262.00 to $274.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Marriott International from $302.00 to $296.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Marriott International in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $329.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Marriott International from $287.00 to $285.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Marriott International in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Three investment 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 MarketBeat.com, Marriott International presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $290.20.

Marriott International Trading Down 1.4%

NASDAQ:MAR opened at $283.84 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $76.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.16. Marriott International has a twelve month low of $205.40 and a twelve month high of $309.42. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $279.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $271.49.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.38 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. Marriott International had a net margin of 10.07% and a negative return on equity of 89.29%. 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. On average, analysts expect that Marriott International will post 10.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Marriott International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.30%.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 11,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,080,440. The trade was a 37.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Peggy Roe sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $292.12, for a total value of $584,240.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 17,466 shares in the company, valued at $5,102,167.92. This represents a 10.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 86,672 shares of company stock valued at $25,174,655 over the last quarter. Insiders own 10.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Marriott International during the second quarter worth about $638,968,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 21.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,175,377 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,389,635,000 after buying an additional 1,637,119 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Marriott International by 194.7% during the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,709,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $407,242,000 after buying an additional 1,129,555 shares during the period. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new position in Marriott International in the second quarter valued at approximately $266,084,000. Finally, Boston Partners acquired a new stake in Marriott International during the second quarter worth $196,579,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.70% 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.