Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Director Sells $79,379.70 in Stock

Key Points

• Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 15 shares of Booking Holdings stock for approximately $79,379.70, decreasing her ownership by 2.01%, leaving her with 732 shares valued at around $3.87 million.
• Booking Holdings reported earnings of $55.40 per share for the latest quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $50.32, with revenues reaching $6.80 billion, a 16% increase from the previous year.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $9.60 per share, translating to an annual yield of 0.8%, with a current dividend payout ratio of 26.71%.

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 15 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,291.98, for a total transaction of $79,379.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 732 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,873,729.36. The trade was a 2.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Vanessa Ames Wittman also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, September 15th, Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 15 shares of Booking stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,500.00, for a total transaction of $82,500.00.

Booking Trading Down 2.5%

BKNG traded down $128.55 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $4,952.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 305,646 shares, compared to its average volume of 242,305. The firm has a market capitalization of $160.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.44, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.35. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $4,096.23 and a 1 year high of $5,839.41. The stock's 50-day moving average is $5,475.39 and its 200-day moving average is $5,327.37.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $55.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $50.32 by $5.08. The business had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.54 billion. Booking had a net margin of 19.23% and a negative return on equity of 134.19%. The business's revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $41.90 earnings per share. Booking has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $9.60 per share. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. Booking's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.71%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Booking

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BKNG. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Booking by 34.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 251 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,249,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter worth $209,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 13.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 513 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,363,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 8.2% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,349 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,872,000 after buying an additional 559 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 493 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,271,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKNG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Booking in a research report on Monday, September 29th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $5,975.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and set a $6,200.00 price objective (up from $6,000.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,418.00 to $5,443.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,820.00 to $5,850.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $5,808.81.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc, formerly The Priceline Group Inc, is a provider of travel and restaurant online reservation and related services. The Company, through its online travel companies (OTCs), connects consumers wishing to make travel reservations with providers of travel services across the world. It offers consumers an array of accommodation reservations (including hotels, bed and breakfasts, hostels, apartments, vacation rentals and other properties) through its Booking.com, priceline.com and agoda.com brands.

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