Marriott International MAR

Competitive advantage analysis · consumer-cyclical

Corporate Default
Overall moat score
50/100
Moderate

Ranked against 13 peers in Lodging

About Marriott International

Marriott International, Inc. engages in the operation, franchise, and licensing of hotel, residential, timeshare, and other lodging properties in the U.S. & Canada, Europe, Middle East & Africa, Greater China, and Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates properties under JW Marriott, The Ritz-Carlton, The Luxury Collection, W Hotels, St. Regis, EDITION, Bvlgari, Marriott Hotels, Sheraton, Westin, Autograph Collection, Renaissance Hotels, … Full MAR analysis →

Key strengths

  • Margins Stable Across Cycles Operating margin volatility is low (stability score 0.92), demonstrating pricing resilience across cycles.
  • ROIC Sustainably Above Peers ROIC at 72.7th percentile exceeds peers and WACC, demonstrating superior capital allocation.

Key risks

  • Scale Without Profitability Despite scale, profitability lags peers (score 0.27), suggesting limited competitive advantage.

The dashed ring is the peer median. Defense scores are percentile ranks against peers, so 50 is roughly the typical company in this group.

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Pricing Power

Moderate
67
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Signals, strengths and risks for Pricing Power

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Signals, strengths and risks for Cost Advantage

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Signals, strengths and risks for Customer Stickiness

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Signals, strengths and risks for Capital Efficiency

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Signals, strengths and risks for Resilience

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Signals, strengths and risks for Scale & Market Position

Where MAR ranks in Lodging

Marriott International ranks #8 of 14 scored companies in Lodging by moat score — the top 57%. The widest moat in the group is Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (WH) at 71/100.

# Company Moat score Rating
4 Atour Lifestyle Holdings Limite ATAT 64/100 Moderate
5 Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. HLT 58/100 Moderate
6 Choice Hotels International, In CHH 53/100 Moderate
7 The Intergroup Corporation INTG 53/100 Moderate
8 Marriott International MAR 50/100 Moderate
9 Civeo Corporation (Canada) CVEO 47/100 Developing
10 GreenTree Hospitality Group Ltd GHG 43/100 Developing
11 Hyatt Hotels Corporation H 38/100 Developing
12 Soho House & Co Inc. SHCO 31/100 Developing

See every General Corporate company ranked by moat score →

How MAR scores on the Corporate Default defenses

Pricing Power

Score 67 · 20% of the moat score

Pricing power is the ability to raise prices without losing volume.

Cost Advantage

Score 67 · 15% of the moat score

A cost advantage means delivering the same product for structurally less — better purchasing, denser distribution, a more automated process.

Customer Stickiness

Score 58 · 15% of the moat score

Stickiness is what makes revenue repeat without being re-won every year.

Capital Efficiency

Score 39 · 18% of the moat score

Capital efficiency asks what the company earns on the money tied up in the business.

Resilience

Score 42 · 17% of the moat score

Resilience is the capacity to get through a bad year on its own terms — enough liquidity, enough interest cover, and enough cash generation to avoid a rescue financing or a forced sale.

Scale & Market Position

Score 29 · 15% of the moat score

Scale matters only when it converts into economics.

How each Corporate Default defense is measured, in full →

Understanding MAR's moat

What is Marriott International's moat score?

Marriott International (MAR) scores 50 out of 100 on the StatsAlpha Moat Map, which rates its competitive advantage as moderate. It ranks #8 of 14 scored companies in Lodging, the top 57%. The score is a weighted composite of 6 competitive defenses, each measured against industry peers of 13 companies in Lodging. Its strongest defense is Cost Advantage (67/100) and its weakest is Scale & Market Position (29/100).

How does Marriott International compare with other Lodging companies?

Marriott International ranks #8 of 14 scored companies in Lodging by moat score. The widest moat in Lodging is Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (WH) at 71/100. The companies ranked closest are The Intergroup Corporation (INTG) at 53 just above it and Civeo Corporation (Canada) (CVEO) at 47 just below it.

How is the moat score calculated?

Each company is scored with an industry-specific template — Corporate Default in this case, chosen because the defenses that matter to a bank are not the ones that matter to a software company. Every defense combines several financial signals, and each signal is measured as a percentile against a peer group of 13 companies in Lodging. The defenses are then weighted to produce the overall score out of 100.

Why is Marriott International scored with the Corporate Default template?

Most public companies sell a product or a service at a margin, so the moat question is whether that margin survives contact with competitors. The Corporate template scores the six defenses that show up in a general operating company's financial signature: whether it can hold price, produce more cheaply than rivals, keep its customers, earn a return above its cost of capital, withstand a downturn, and turn size into economics.

Which competitive defenses are measured for Marriott International?

The Corporate Default template measures 6 defenses, and MAR scores: Pricing Power (67), Cost Advantage (67), Customer Stickiness (58), Capital Efficiency (39), Resilience (42), Scale & Market Position (29). Each is scored independently as a percentile against peers, so a company can be strong on one and weak on another — the overall score reflects how those defenses are weighted for this industry.

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