Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-two brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $282.6316.

MAR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Marriott International from $285.00 to $287.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Barclays cut their price objective on Marriott International from $276.00 to $262.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Marriott International in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $284.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Marriott International from $273.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Marriott International from $285.00 to $280.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 6th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marriott International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Marriott International by 1.5% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,543,195 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,612,606,000 after acquiring an additional 306,717 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,488,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,592,371,000 after purchasing an additional 114,973 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 16.4% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,427,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,292,809,000 after purchasing an additional 766,309 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Marriott International by 2.0% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,223,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,420,308,000 after buying an additional 102,798 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Marriott International by 5.0% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,330,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,183,178,000 after buying an additional 206,820 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.70% of the company’s stock.

Marriott International Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ MAR opened at $260.20 on Friday. Marriott International has a 12-month low of $205.40 and a 12-month high of $307.52. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $265.21 and a 200 day moving average of $259.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.35.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.65. Marriott International had a net margin of 9.60% and a negative return on equity of 93.44%. The firm had revenue of $6.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Marriott International has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.850-10.080 EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at 2.310-2.390 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Marriott International will post 10.1 EPS for the current year.

Marriott International declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, August 7th that allows the company to repurchase 25,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Marriott International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 21st were paid a $0.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 21st. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio is 30.21%.

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.