Amundi Sells 45,612 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Amundi cut its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 18.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 201,942 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 45,612 shares during the quarter. Amundi's holdings in Booking were worth $850,240,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $209,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Booking by 25.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $955,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its position in Booking by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 87 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $504,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Booking in the second quarter worth $179,000. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of Booking stock opened at $199.31 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $154.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.22, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $173.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $177.58. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $150.14 and a 12 month high of $231.80.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.52 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 117.14% and a net margin of 22.23%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.99 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Booking from $224.00 to $208.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $214.00 price target on shares of Booking and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $215.00 price target (down from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $175.00 price objective (down from $180.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $227.05.

Booking News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Long-term growth appeal: A Zacks analysis identifies Booking Holdings as a potentially attractive growth stock, supporting investor interest in the company’s ability to generate market-beating returns over time. Why Booking Holdings Is a Top Growth Stock for the Long-Term
• Positive Sentiment: Options activity signals bullish positioning: Investors purchased 21,239 BKNG call options, about 31% above the typical daily volume. This suggests increased speculative optimism, although options activity alone does not guarantee sustained buying in the stock.
• Positive Sentiment: Travel demand remains healthy: Search data from KAYAK, a Booking Holdings brand, showed French families continuing to plan summer travel, particularly short-haul beach and holiday trips. The data provides a modestly positive signal for demand across Booking’s travel ecosystem. KAYAK Summer Travel Search Data
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming earnings are the next major catalyst: Wall Street expects earnings growth in Booking’s report next week, but analysts note the company lacks the combination of factors that typically supports a likely earnings beat. Investors may therefore remain cautious until the company provides updated guidance and results. Booking Holdings Reports Next Week
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive pressure: Bank of America launched a broad travel center powered by Rocket Travel by Agoda, offering nearly one million travel options. The expanded Agoda-backed platform could increase competition for Booking’s hotel, flight and activity bookings. Bank of America Launches Travel Center

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at $69,572,025.25. This trade represents a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Booking Company Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding BKNG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.