Bank of Nova Scotia Takes $121.94 Million Position in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia acquired 684,101 Booking Holdings shares worth approximately $121.94 million during the second quarter, giving it a 0.09% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of BKNG.
• Booking reported quarterly EPS of $2.54, exceeding estimates by $0.11, while revenue rose 8.1% year over year to $7.35 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share.
• Analysts maintain a favorable outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $235.72 versus the stock’s reported $209.62 price. Company insiders sold approximately $26.34 million in shares during the last quarter.

Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 684,101 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $121,936,000. Bank of Nova Scotia owned 0.09% of Booking at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Booking by 34.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 251 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,249,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 25.0% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $955,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 50.0% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 87 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $504,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Booking during the second quarter worth approximately $179,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Trading Down 0.1%

NASDAQ BKNG opened at $209.62 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $157.50 billion, a PE ratio of 23.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $150.14 and a twelve month high of $231.80. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $188.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $177.00.

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 (EPS) 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%. Booking's revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $55.40 EPS. Research analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.47 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Booking

In related news, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total value of $4,220,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 59,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,618,327.82. This trade represents a 25.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $1,000,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,200,000. The trade was a 23.81% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 140,050 shares of company stock valued at $26,341,680. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Mizuho set a $240.00 price objective on Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. DA Davidson set a $240.00 price target on Booking in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $240.00 price target (up from $215.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Booking from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, May 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Booking presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.72.

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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