10,066 Shares in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Purchased by Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super

Key Points

• Aware Super disclosed a new position in Booking Holdings, buying 10,066 shares in the first quarter worth about $42.4 million.
• Booking reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.14 versus the $1.08 estimate and revenue of $5.53 billion, up 16.2% year over year.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, while analysts remain generally constructive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $227.29.

Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super acquired a new stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 10,066 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $42,381,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter valued at $361,463,000. Rit Capital Partners PLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter worth $51,396,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. raised its position in shares of Booking by 862.0% in the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 218,080 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,167,890,000 after buying an additional 195,411 shares in the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter valued at $210,352,000. Finally, Rathbones Group PLC boosted its stake in Booking by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 64,908 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $347,604,000 after buying an additional 11,042 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Booking

In related news, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total transaction of $10,229,375.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 425,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $69,572,025.25. This trade represents a 12.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $184.61 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $143.05 billion, a PE ratio of 24.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $150.14 and a 52-week high of $231.80. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $169.57 and a 200 day moving average of $179.48.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.06. Booking had a negative return on equity of 117.14% and a net margin of 22.23%.The business had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.99 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Booking's dividend payout ratio is 22.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Evercore set a $245.00 price target on Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Booking from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Booking from $244.00 to $220.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $214.00 price objective on shares of Booking and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $227.29.

About Booking

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel company that operates a portfolio of consumer brands and technology platforms that facilitate the search for and booking of travel services. The company's businesses focus on accommodations, transportation and related travel services through consumer-facing websites and apps as well as partner distribution channels. Booking Holdings was originally founded as Priceline in the late 1990s and adopted the Booking Holdings name in 2018; it is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Its core offerings include online reservations for hotels, vacation rentals and other lodging; flight and car rental search and booking; and ancillary services that support travel planning and on-property experiences.

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