Ascent Group LLC Acquires 130 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. by 67.4%, acquiring an additional 130 shares, bringing its total holdings to 323 shares valued at approximately $1.49 million.
• Booking Holdings reported $55.40 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, with revenue of $6.80 billion, up 16.0% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $9.60 per share, with a yield of 0.7%, set to be paid on September 30 to shareholders recorded by September 5.

Ascent Group LLC raised its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 67.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 323 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 130 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Booking were worth $1,488,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BKNG. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 130.0% in the 1st quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 46 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in Booking during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,592,000. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in Booking during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,170,000. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Booking during the 1st quarter valued at about $405,000. Finally, Voleon Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Booking by 111.5% during the 1st quarter. Voleon Capital Management LP now owns 715 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,294,000 after purchasing an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Booking Stock Performance

Booking stock traded down $39.68 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $5,458.32. 128,764 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 172,971. The firm has a market capitalization of $176.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.96, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.39. The firm's 50 day moving average is $5,594.00 and its 200-day moving average is $5,215.75. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $3,894.51 and a fifty-two week high of $5,839.41.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $55.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $50.32 by $5.08. The business had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. Booking had a net margin of 19.23% and a negative return on equity of 134.19%. Booking's revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $41.90 EPS. Booking has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. Analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a $9.60 dividend. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. Booking's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKNG has been the subject of several analyst reports. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,750.00 to $6,500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. B. Riley reissued a "buy" rating and set a $6,700.00 price target (up from $6,100.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating and set a $6,250.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,820.00 to $5,850.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of Booking from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $5,808.81.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Booking news, Director Larry Quinlan sold 64 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,587.11, for a total transaction of $357,575.04. Following the sale, the director directly owned 195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,089,486.45. This trade represents a 24.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,476.89, for a total transaction of $5,548,089.57. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 24,620 shares in the company, valued at $134,841,031.80. This trade represents a 3.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,116 shares of company stock worth $22,869,434 over the last quarter. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Booking Profile

Booking Holdings Inc, formerly The Priceline Group Inc, is a provider of travel and restaurant online reservation and related services. The Company, through its online travel companies (OTCs), connects consumers wishing to make travel reservations with providers of travel services across the world. It offers consumers an array of accommodation reservations (including hotels, bed and breakfasts, hostels, apartments, vacation rentals and other properties) through its Booking.com, priceline.com and agoda.com brands.