Abacus FCF Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Abacus FCF Advisors initiated a Booking Holdings position of 38,180 shares worth approximately $6.8 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of BKNG.
• Booking reported quarterly revenue of $7.35 billion, up 8.1% year over year, and EPS of $2.54, beating analyst expectations. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $235.72.
• Booking declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, while insiders sold $26.3 million of stock during the last quarter, primarily through pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.

Abacus FCF Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 38,180 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,805,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BKNG. Bigelow Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Bigelow Investment Advisors LLC now owns 112 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $600,000 after buying an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its stake in Booking by 1.7% in the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 121 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Booking by 30.0% in the fourth quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 13 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN grew its position in Booking by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 377 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,019,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its position in Booking by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 53 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In related news, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total value of $206,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 15,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,100,500. This represents a 6.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 375 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.00, for a total value of $79,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,404,063. This trade represents a 2.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 140,050 shares of company stock worth $26,341,680 over the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKNG has been the topic of several analyst reports. DA Davidson set a $240.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on Booking from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Booking from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $234.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $235.72.

Booking Trading Up 2.3%

BKNG opened at $213.00 on Thursday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $150.14 and a 1-year high of $231.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $160.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a 50 day moving average of $186.78 and a 200-day moving average of $177.12.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.19 billion. Booking had a net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. Booking's quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $55.40 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.47 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Booking's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.58%.

Key Stories Impacting Booking

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Booking’s KAYAK brand reported that international airfares for U.K. travelers in September and October are averaging 26% below peak-season levels. Cheaper “shoulder-season” travel could encourage additional bookings and support demand across Booking’s accommodation and travel platforms. KAYAK shoulder-season travel research
• Positive Sentiment: Recent fundamentals remain supportive. Booking’s latest quarterly revenue rose 8.1% year over year to $7.35 billion and earnings exceeded analyst expectations. Analysts maintain a broadly favorable view, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $235.72, above recent trading levels. Booking growth-stock analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Booking declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, or $1.68 annually, representing an approximately 0.8% yield. The payout signals ongoing shareholder returns but is modest and is unlikely to materially affect the stock’s near-term direction.
• Negative Sentiment: Booking Vice President Peter Millones sold 50,050 shares worth approximately $10.4 million, reducing his position by 11.77%. Director Vanessa Ames Wittman separately sold 375 shares for about $79,000. Both transactions were executed under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, reducing their significance as bearish signals; Millones still retains roughly $77.9 million in BKNG stock. Booking insider share sales

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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