Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) Sets New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Expedia Group shares reached a new 52-week high, trading as high as $312.50 after Truist Financial raised its price target from $246 to $309, while maintaining a Hold rating.
• Analyst views remain mixed: the stock has a consensus Hold rating and an average price target of $292.67, despite several Buy ratings and targets as high as $330.
• Expedia reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.96 beating estimates of $1.41 and revenue rising 14.7% year over year to $3.43 billion. Institutional investors own 90.76% of the company, while recent insider transactions involved stock sales.

Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Truist Financial raised their price target on the stock from $246.00 to $309.00. Truist Financial currently has a hold rating on the stock. Expedia Group traded as high as $312.50 and last traded at $312.2160, with a volume of 1488304 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $298.03.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Expedia Group from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $307.00 to $303.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Expedia Group from $290.00 to $294.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on Expedia Group from $244.00 to $230.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $330.00 target price on shares of Expedia Group in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twenty-two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Expedia Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $292.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Expedia Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Expedia Group in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Expedia Group in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Expedia Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Expedia Group by 272.9% in the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 179 shares of the online travel company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its stake 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 valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. 90.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Expedia Group Stock Up 4.7%

The firm has a market cap of $38.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.47, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.22. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $253.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $243.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The online travel company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.55. Expedia Group had a return on equity of 84.33% and a net margin of 9.81%.The firm had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.40 earnings per share. Expedia Group's revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 17.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 28th were paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 28th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. 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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