Noteworthy Insider Buys Reported At These 3 Companies Amid Low Volume of Insider Trading

Marriott International Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) is another company that had an insider buy stock this past week. Director Susan C. Schwab reported buying 364 Class A shares on Wednesday at a price of $68.59 apiece, and currently holds 721 shares. In mid-November, Marriott and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. (NYSE:HOT) announced a merger agreement that can create the world’s largest hotel company, with more than 5,500 hotels worldwide. Starwood shareholders are set to receive 0.920 of Class A Marriott shares and $2.00 in cash for each share of Starwood’s common stock. The worldwide operator and franchisor of hotels and timeshare properties has seen its shares decline nearly 12% so far in 2015. Meanwhile, the stock trades at a trailing price-to-earnings ratio of 22.77, which is slightly below the average of 22.95 for the companies included in the S&P 500. Nonetheless, this valuation metric does not take into account the potential benefits of the possible merger between the two hospitality giants. The company’s focus on long-term management contracts and franchising diminishes the volatility of its earnings figures during periods of weak economic conditions, while its portfolio of hotels is constantly extending without substantial investments. A number of 29 hedge funds from our database were invested in the company at the end of the third quarter, amassing a mere 2.70% of its outstanding common stock. Ken Heebner’s Capital Growth Management acquired a new stake of 835,000 shares in Marriott International Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) during the September quarter.

Farmers National Banc Corp (NASDAQ:FMNB) reported an unusual volume of insider buying last week, as three different insiders purchased shares. Director Earl R. Scott purchased 1,000 shares on Thursday at a price of $8.08 per share and currently holds 17,261 shares. Mark R. Witmer, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Banking Officer, also bought a 1,000-share block on Wednesday for $8.02 each, boosting up his holding to 112,907 shares. Chairman Lance J. Ciroli acquired 500 shares on the same day at $8.00 apiece, increasing his stake to 36,023 shares. The one-bank holding company offers banking services via its nationally-chartered subsidiary called the Farmers National Bank of Canfield. The company’s shares are almost 3% in the red year-to-date and trade at an attractive forward P/E ratio of 11.29, which is substantially below the mean of 17.47 for the companies included in the S&P 500 Index. Farmers National’s net income for the first nine months of 2015 totaled $4.9 million, down from $6.8 million reported for the same period last year. This decrease was mainly attributable to increased merger activity expenses, as the company completed the mergers of the parent companies of 1^st National Community Bank and First National of Orrville earlier this year. Neil Chriss’ Hutchin Hill Capital upped its position in Farmers National Banc Corp (NASDAQ:FMNB) by 16% during the July-to-September period to approximately 233,000 shares.

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