J.P. Morgan Lowers Price Target on Marriott International

J.P. Morgan has put out a report on Marriott International MAR that lowers the price target. In the report, J.P. Morgan writes, "We are sticking with OW rating here given an operating/EPS reset post 2Q11 results, low near-term operating expectations, an undemanding valuation (at 10.5x 2012E EV/EBITDA), and a 3-year 24% EPS CAGR (2010-2013). This is despite our frustration with MAR's second consecutive imperfect quarterly result. It is clear that MAR's DC exposure (higher than peers) and upper upscale group exposure (2Q11 Marriott branded group RevPAR up just 2%) is causing it to underperform its peers like HOT and its limited service hotels are lagging versus higher price point segments (and here too MAR is lagging HOT)." J.P. Morgan rated Marriott International as Overweight with a lowered price target of $41.00. Marriott International closed yesterday at $34.54.