Investors Buy High Volume of Call Options on Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR)

Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 24,751 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 850% compared to the average daily volume of 2,604 call options.

Insider Transactions at Marriott International

In other news, insider William P. Brown sold 1,707 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.30, for a total value of $485,300.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,077 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,560,791.10. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 10.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marriott International

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MAR. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Marriott International during the 4th quarter valued at $1,086,000. Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in Marriott International by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 5,554 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,549,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Yoffe Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Marriott International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marriott International by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 12,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,566,000 after purchasing an additional 1,455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in Marriott International by 101.1% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 6,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,783,000 after acquiring an additional 3,213 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.70% of the company’s stock.

Marriott International Price Performance

NASDAQ MAR opened at $290.45 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $80.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.38, a P/E/G ratio of 4.88 and a beta of 1.57. Marriott International has a 1-year low of $204.55 and a 1-year high of $307.52. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $284.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $261.87.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $2.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by $0.08. Marriott International had a negative return on equity of 177.91% and a net margin of 11.18%. On average, analysts anticipate that Marriott International will post 9.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on MAR shares. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Marriott International from $258.00 to $264.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Marriott International from $262.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Marriott International from $246.00 to $293.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Marriott International from $251.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Marriott International from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $284.45.

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.