Groupe la Francaise Buys New Shares in Marriott International, Inc. $MAR

Groupe la Francaise purchased a new position in shares of Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MAR. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Marriott International by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 847 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Marriott International by 4.4% in the first quarter. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $243,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its position in Marriott International by 647.2% during the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 23,440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,667,000 after acquiring an additional 20,303 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems increased its stake in Marriott International by 29.8% during the first quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems now owns 18,548 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,066,000 after acquiring an additional 4,256 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Marriott International by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 5,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,686,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. 70.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MAR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Marriott International from $336.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Marriott International from $388.00 to $386.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Marriott International from $446.00 to $449.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Marriott International from $343.00 to $384.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Marriott International from $352.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Marriott International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $388.59.

Marriott International Price Performance

Shares of MAR opened at $372.95 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $98.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.13, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.11. Marriott International, Inc. has a 12 month low of $253.76 and a 12 month high of $410.98. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $379.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $354.20.

Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.56 by $0.16. Marriott International had a net margin of 9.72% and a negative return on equity of 80.97%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.32 EPS. Marriott International’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Marriott International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.380-11.630 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 2.990-3.060 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Marriott International, Inc. will post 11.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Marriott International Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is a boost from Marriott International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. Marriott International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.64%.

Insider Activity

In other Marriott International news, EVP Peggy Roe sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.56, for a total value of $1,084,680.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 19,827 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,168,650.12. This represents a 13.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 11.43% of the company’s stock.

About Marriott International

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.