Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Shares Acquired by NewEdge Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Institutional ownership increased sharply: NewEdge Advisors raised its Booking Holdings position by 2,591.6% to 88,822 shares, while several other investors also significantly expanded their holdings. Institutions and hedge funds now own 92.42% of the stock.
• Booking exceeded quarterly expectations: The company reported $2.54 in EPS and $7.35 billion in revenue, beating estimates, with revenue up 8.1% year over year. Booking also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, representing a 1.0% annualized yield.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, but insiders have been selling: Booking has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $236.70, while insiders sold approximately $16.9 million of stock over the past 90 days under pre-arranged trading plans.

NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 2,591.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 88,822 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 85,522 shares during the quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC's holdings in Booking were worth $16,424,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG purchased a new position in Booking during the second quarter worth approximately $11,687,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC grew its holdings in Booking by 2,860.8% in the 2nd quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 12,554 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,238,000 after buying an additional 12,130 shares in the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $361,463,000. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Booking by 1,663.9% in the 2nd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 28,698 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,115,000 after acquiring an additional 27,071 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Booking by 2,643.0% in the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 527,425 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $94,008,000 after acquiring an additional 508,197 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Booking Stock Up 0.5%

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $174.33 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $150.14 and a 52 week high of $225.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $194.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $178.83. The company has a market cap of $130.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.07.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced 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 business had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.19 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $55.40 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Booking's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 3,000 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.48, for a total value of $610,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 73,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,935,432. This trade represents a 3.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total value of $4,220,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,794 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,618,327.82. This represents 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 81,550 shares of company stock worth $16,922,744 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BKNG has been the topic of several recent research reports. 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. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Booking and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Booking from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Mizuho set a $240.00 target price on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $215.00 price target (up from $195.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $236.70.

More Booking News

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Travel demand remains resilient despite geopolitical conflicts and a slowing macroeconomic environment, supporting the long-term outlook for Booking’s core lodging and travel businesses. Booking Holdings Stock: A Travel Stock to Buy Right Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Booking presented at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference and Citi’s Global TMT Conference. The available reports are conference transcripts and do not identify a major new catalyst for the stock. Goldman Sachs Conference Transcript Citi Conference Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: A September short-interest update reported zero shares short, unchanged from the prior period, with a zero-day days-to-cover ratio. Because the figures show no measurable short position, the update provides little directional information.
• Negative Sentiment: The European General Court sided with EU regulators in rejecting Booking’s challenge to the veto of its ETraveli acquisition. The decision ends Booking’s effort to complete the deal and represents a setback to its strategic expansion plans. Judges Side With EU Regulators in Blocking Booking’s Acquisition of ETraveli

About Booking

Booking Holdings Inc is a global provider of online travel and related services. The company connects consumers with accommodations, flights, rental cars, restaurants and travel experiences through a portfolio of digital brands and websites.

Its principal brands include Booking.com, which offers lodging, transportation and travel experiences; Priceline, which provides online booking services for hotels, flights, rental cars and vacation packages; Agoda, which focuses primarily on travel bookings in Asia and other international markets; KAYAK, a travel metasearch engine; OpenTable, a restaurant reservation and management platform; and Rentalcars.com, a global car rental service.

Booking Holdings serves customers, travel providers and restaurants across numerous countries and regions, with a particularly extensive international presence.

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