Bank of New York Mellon Corp Purchases New Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon acquired 7.69 million Booking Holdings shares worth approximately $1.37 billion, giving it a 0.99% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of BKNG.
• Analysts maintain a bullish outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $235.72. Booking also exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.54 in earnings per share and $7.35 billion in revenue, up 8.1% year over year.
• Booking declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, representing an annualized yield of 0.8%. Meanwhile, insiders sold 140,050 shares worth $26.3 million over the past three months, though the reported transactions were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 7,688,816 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,370,455,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 0.99% of Booking as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its stake in Booking by 3,475.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 143 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Booking by 3,550.0% in the second quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 146 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Camelot Portfolios LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Osbon Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, First Financial Corp IN grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 150 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BKNG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays set a $210.00 target price on Booking and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. DA Davidson set a $240.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $236.00 price objective (up from $225.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $234.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $230.00 target price (down from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Booking currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $235.72.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other Booking news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 375 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.00, for a total transaction of $79,125.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 16,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,404,063. This represents a 2.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total value of $206,700.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,100,500. This trade represents a 6.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 140,050 shares of company stock valued at $26,341,680. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Booking Price Performance

BKNG opened at $209.87 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $150.14 and a fifty-two week high of $231.80. The business has a 50-day moving average of $187.71 and a 200-day moving average of $177.15. The company has a market capitalization of $157.69 billion, a PE ratio of 23.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.07.

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

Booking Announces Dividend

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

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.

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