Vanguard Group Inc. Purchases 7,194 Shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide Co. (NYSE:VAC)

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide Co. (NYSE:VAC) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,227,010 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,194 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 0.09% of Marriott Vacations Worldwide worth $289,785,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 130.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Quarry LP lifted its stake in Marriott Vacations Worldwide by 81.6% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 808 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide during the 3rd quarter valued at about $97,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in Marriott Vacations Worldwide during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $112,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.52% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Marriott Vacations Worldwide

In other Marriott Vacations Worldwide news, insider Stephanie Sobeck Butera purchased 650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $71.66 per share, with a total value of $46,579.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 8,770 shares in the company, valued at $628,458.20. This trade represents a 8.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Trading Down 3.5 %

Shares of VAC opened at $54.64 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 3.53 and a quick ratio of 2.86. Marriott Vacations Worldwide Co. has a 1 year low of $50.97 and a 1 year high of $104.49. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.17.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide (NYSE:VAC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $1.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.24 billion. Marriott Vacations Worldwide had a net margin of 4.20% and a return on equity of 10.89%. On average, equities analysts expect that Marriott Vacations Worldwide Co. will post 6.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.78%. Marriott Vacations Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on VAC. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $112.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Marriott Vacations Worldwide in a research report on Monday, January 6th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $87.00 price objective for the company. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $116.00 to $97.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Marriott Vacations Worldwide from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.75.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Profile

Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation, a vacation company, develops, markets, sells, and manages vacation ownership and related businesses, products, and services in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Vacation Ownership and Exchange & Third-Party Management.