Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Shares Sold by Ashton Thomas Securities LLC

Key Points

• Ashton Thomas Securities LLC reduced its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. by 10.8%, now holding 411 shares valued at approximately $1.89 million.
• Booking reported a $55.40 EPS for its last quarter, exceeding estimates by $5.08, with a 16% increase in quarterly revenues year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $9.60, reflecting an annualized payout of $38.40 and a dividend yield of 0.7%.

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC cut its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 10.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 411 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 50 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC's holdings in Booking were worth $1,893,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Booking by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,956,462 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $13,620,154,000 after acquiring an additional 30,054 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Booking by 521,609.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,363,345 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $10,887,718,000 after acquiring an additional 2,362,892 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Booking by 0.5% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 370,327 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,706,063,000 after acquiring an additional 1,699 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in Booking by 6.6% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 296,331 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,365,170,000 after acquiring an additional 18,268 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Booking by 3.7% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 222,200 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,023,655,000 after acquiring an additional 8,015 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,476.89, for a total value of $5,548,089.57. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 24,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $134,841,031.80. This represents a 3.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,052 shares of company stock valued at $22,511,858. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Booking Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of BKNG traded down $80.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $5,505.80. 202,400 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 166,659. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $3,700.97 and a 1-year high of $5,839.41. The company has a market capitalization of $178.44 billion, a PE ratio of 38.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.39. The business has a 50 day moving average of $5,615.88 and a 200 day moving average of $5,198.14.

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

Booking Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on BKNG shares. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Booking to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Wedbush reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $5,900.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Booking from $4,720.00 to $5,630.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Booking from $5,750.00 to $6,300.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Booking from $5,900.00 to $6,100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $5,808.81.

Booking Company 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.