AIA Group Ltd Sells 57,519 Shares of Marriott International, Inc. $MAR

AIA Group Ltd lessened its position in shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 48.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 60,525 shares of the company’s stock after selling 57,519 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $15,763,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in Marriott International during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marriott International in the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marriott International during the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 312.5% in the 3rd quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Marriott International during the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. 70.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marriott International

In other Marriott International news, insider William P. Brown sold 9,456 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.25, for a total transaction of $3,387,612.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 11,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,940,750. This trade represents a 46.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider David S. Marriott sold 4,747 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total transaction of $1,708,920.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 591,669 shares in the company, valued at approximately $213,000,840. This represents a 0.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 95,540 shares of company stock worth $34,274,055. 10.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on Marriott International from $320.00 to $356.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $357.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Marriott International from $355.00 to $398.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore lifted their price target on shares of Marriott International from $320.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Marriott International from $283.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $343.47.

Marriott International Stock Performance

Marriott International stock opened at $322.52 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $85.46 billion, a PE ratio of 33.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $331.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $299.81. Marriott International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $205.40 and a fifty-two week high of $370.00.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.61 by ($0.03). Marriott International had a negative return on equity of 84.23% and a net margin of 9.93%.The firm had revenue of $6.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.45 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Marriott International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.320-11.570 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 2.500-2.550 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Marriott International, Inc. will post 10.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Marriott International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 26th. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.24%.

Marriott International Company Profile

Marriott International is a global lodging company that develops, manages and franchises a broad portfolio of hotels and related lodging facilities. Its core activities include hotel and resort management, franchise operations, property development and the provision of centralized services such as reservations, marketing and loyalty program management. The company’s brand architecture spans market segments from luxury and premium to select-service and extended-stay, enabling it to serve a wide range of business and leisure travelers as well as corporate and group customers.

The company traces its roots to the hospitality business founded by J.