Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Holdings Raised by Jacobs & Co. CA

Key Points

• Jacobs & Co. CA increased its Booking Holdings stake by 27.6% in the third quarter to 75,118 shares valued at approximately $12.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of BKNG.
• Booking reported quarterly earnings of $2.54 per share, beating estimates of $2.43, while revenue rose 8.1% year over year to $7.35 billion. The company also pays a $0.42 quarterly dividend, representing a 1.0% yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $235.38, despite recent insider selling and the stock trading near $160.34.

Jacobs & Co. CA increased its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 27.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 75,118 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 16,242 shares during the period. Booking accounts for 1.1% of Jacobs & Co. CA's holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Jacobs & Co. CA's holdings in Booking were worth $12,237,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. bought a new position in shares of Booking during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,090,000. Bullock Wealth Management Group grew its position in shares of Booking by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bullock Wealth Management Group now owns 3,980 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $656,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Riversedge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Booking by 70.1% in the 3rd quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 2,568 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $418,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital increased its stake in shares of Booking by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 12,962 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,310,000 after acquiring an additional 931 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA lifted its position in shares of Booking by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 1,395 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $227,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Booking Trading Up 0.2%

Booking stock opened at $160.34 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.13. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $186.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $177.89. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $150.14 and a 1-year high of $220.81.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. The company 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 firm's revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $55.40 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.49 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Booking's payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Insider Activity at Booking

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.48, for a total transaction of $610,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 73,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,935,432. This represents a 3.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 59,794 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,618,327.82. The trade was a 25.06% 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. Insiders have sold 83,050 shares of company stock valued at $17,182,274 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BKNG. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Booking from $266.00 to $274.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Benchmark upped their price objective on shares of Booking from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of Booking from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Susquehanna restated a "positive" rating and issued a $240.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Booking to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Booking has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $235.38.

Booking Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel and restaurant reservation company headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut. Through its digital platforms, the company helps consumers search for, compare and reserve accommodations, flights, rental cars, vacation packages, attractions and restaurant reservations.

Its portfolio includes Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, OpenTable, Rentalcars.com and the travel metasearch brands Momondo and Cheapflights. Booking.com is primarily known for lodging reservations, while Priceline focuses on travel deals, Agoda serves customers across international markets with a strong presence in Asia, KAYAK and its related brands provide travel search and comparison services, and OpenTable operates a restaurant reservation platform.

The company was founded in 1997 as Priceline.com and was later renamed The Priceline Group before adopting the Booking Holdings name in 2018.

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