Tuesday's IBD 50 Stocks To Watch pick, hotel leader Marriott International, is in buy range from its latest buy point in today's stock market rally. MAR shares rallied more 2% than midday Tuesday.
Stocks To Buy And Watch: Marriott
Bethesda, Md.-based Marriott International operates, franchises or licenses more than 7,600 lodging properties across the world. Its brands include Marriott Hotels & Resorts, JW Marriott, Courtyard, Residence Inn and Ritz-Carlton.
On Feb. 15, Marriott reported huge earnings and sales growth. The company earned $1.30 per share on revenue of $4.4 billion, year-over-year increases of 983% and 105%, respectively. The results continued a turnaround for the company, which saw declining EPS or losses in 2020 and Q1 of 2021.
The omicron variant of Covid 19 caused a temporary setback in global demand recovery in January, Chief Executive Anthony Capuano said in the Marriott earnings release. But new bookings have rebounded to pre-Omicron levels. "We are optimistic that the global recovery will progress meaningfully throughout 2022," Capuano said.
Marriott shares jumped 7.5% last Wednesday. Delta Air Lines' earnings that day sparked a rally in travel stocks in another sign of improvement in the sector.
Looking forward, the company's annual earnings are expected to jump 71% in 2022 and another 28% in 2023, according to FactSet.
Marriott will report first-quarter earnings on May 4 before the market opens. Analysts expect earnings of 90 cents a share on sales of $4.169 billion.
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Marriott's IBD Stock Ratings
MAR shows a middling 79 out of 99 Earnings Per Share Rating and a best-possible SMR grade of A, according to IBD Stock Checkup. The EPS Rating took a hit from declines in earlier quarter. The SMR Rating analyzes a company's sales, margins and return on equity, and offers a letter grade from A (the best) to E (the worst). MAR stock boasts a 98 out of 99 IBD Composite Rating.
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MAR Stock Shows Buy Point
Marriott is at the top of the 5% buy area past a 179.40 buy point in a cup with handle, according to IBD MarketSmith chart analysis. Shares rallied more than 2% midday Tuesday. The 5% buy area tops out at 188.37.
A key strength is the stock's relative strength line, which hit a new high on the April 14 breakout, a bullish indication for the breakout. The RS line measures a stock's price performance vs. the S&P 500 and is an important technical indicator.
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