Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Expedia Group has a consensus “Hold” rating from 39 analysts: 22 recommend holding and 17 recommend buying. The average 12-month price target is $288.64, with recent targets ranging from $250 to $334.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting earnings of $1.96 per share versus a $1.41 estimate and revenue of $3.43 billion. Revenue increased 14.7% year over year.
• Insiders recently sold shares, while institutional investors own 90.76% of the stock. Expedia also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share, representing a 0.7% yield.

Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the thirty-nine research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Twenty-two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seventeen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $288.6364.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Expedia Group from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Expedia Group from $260.00 to $264.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Argus increased their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $270.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Wedbush began coverage on Expedia Group in a report on Thursday, July 16th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $334.00 price objective on the stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Expedia Group

In other Expedia Group news, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 4,702 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.00, for a total transaction of $1,095,566.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 105,448 shares in the company, valued at $24,569,384. This represents a 4.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Lance A. Soliday sold 940 shares of Expedia Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $221.86, for a total value of $208,548.40. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 14,083 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,124,454.38. The trade was a 6.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 5.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Expedia Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in Expedia Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Expedia Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Expedia Group by 78.6% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the online travel company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Expedia Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Expedia Group by 970.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 182 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.76% of the company's stock.

Expedia Group Stock Performance

EXPE opened at $259.94 on Monday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $244.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $243.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43. The stock has a market cap of $31.85 billion, a PE ratio of 22.88, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.23. Expedia Group has a 1 year low of $174.05 and a 1 year high of $303.80.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The online travel company reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.55. The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.35 billion. Expedia Group had a return on equity of 84.33% and a net margin of 9.81%.Expedia Group's quarterly revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.40 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Expedia Group will post 17.04 EPS for the current year.

Expedia Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 28th were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 28th. Expedia Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.90%.

About Expedia Group

Expedia Group NASDAQ: EXPE is a global travel technology company that operates an online marketplace connecting consumers, travel suppliers and third‑party partners. The company's platform enables search, comparison and booking of travel products and services, including hotels, airline tickets, vacation rentals, car rentals, cruises and packaged travel. Its portfolio comprises consumer-facing travel brands as well as corporate travel solutions and technology services that serve both leisure and business travelers.

Key offerings include consumer booking platforms and mobile apps that aggregate inventory from hotels, vacation rental managers, airlines and car rental companies, alongside ancillary travel services such as trip insurance and activities.

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