Verus Capital Partners LLC Has $543,000 Holdings in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR)

Verus Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) by 20.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,945 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 328 shares during the period. Verus Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Marriott International were worth $543,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Marriott International by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 379 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. TFG Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. TFG Advisers LLC now owns 4,426 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,235,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Marriott International by 0.4% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 8,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,162,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its position in Marriott International by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 3,290 shares of the company’s stock worth $918,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evermay Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Marriott International by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,415 shares of the company’s stock worth $953,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. 70.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marriott International Price Performance

Shares of Marriott International stock opened at $280.45 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $283.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $266.94. Marriott International, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $204.55 and a fifty-two week high of $307.52. The company has a market cap of $77.32 billion, a PE ratio of 33.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 1.57.

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

Marriott International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MAR shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Marriott International from $252.00 to $283.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Marriott International from $280.00 to $314.00 and gave the company 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 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Marriott International from $251.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Marriott International from $251.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $284.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Kathleen K. Oberg sold 14,498 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.07, for a total transaction of $4,031,458.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 14,282 shares in the company, valued at $3,971,395.74. This trade represents a 50.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan C. Schwab sold 1,054 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.48, for a total value of $292,463.92. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4,551 shares in the company, valued at $1,262,811.48. This trade represents a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 31,694 shares of company stock worth $8,938,132. Corporate insiders own 10.07% of the company’s stock.

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.