Marriott Celebrates 75th Birthday During Tough Year

Marriott International today celebrated its 75th anniversary, as chairman and CEO J.W. Marriott Jr. provided a less-than-optimistic preview of the company's second quarter results.

"Given that the lodging industry typically trails an economic recovery by three to six months, we expect the measure of profitability for hotels to decline in the quarter by 5 percent to 7 percent," said Marriott, who today will ring the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange. This latest forecast was less optimistic than earlier projections.