Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Shares Bought by Amundi

Key Points

• Amundi increased its Booking Holdings stake by 2,833% in the second quarter, acquiring 5.72 million additional shares and ending with approximately 0.79% ownership valued at $1.06 billion. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of the company.
• Booking reported quarterly earnings of $2.54 per share and revenue of $7.35 billion, exceeding analyst estimates, while revenue increased 8.1% year over year.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $236.70, compared with the stock’s reported price of $193.29; the company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share.

Amundi grew its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 2,833.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,923,013 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,721,071 shares during the quarter. Amundi owned about 0.79% of Booking worth $1,055,718,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BKNG. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 419,256.0% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 214,651,580 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $38,259,498,000 after buying an additional 214,600,394 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Booking during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $11,646,302,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Booking during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,691,186,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Booking during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,370,455,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 2,525.5% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,101,866 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,087,597,000 after purchasing an additional 5,869,459 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of Booking stock opened at $193.29 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $194.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $178.60. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $150.14 and a 12-month high of $226.10. The stock has a market cap of $145.23 billion, a PE ratio of 21.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.07.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.The business had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $55.40 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

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 given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Booking's payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BKNG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. B. Riley Financial reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $274.00 target price (up from $264.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of Booking from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating 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 company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Mizuho set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $236.70.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In other Booking news, Director Vanessa Wittman sold 375 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.00, for a total value of $79,125.00. Following the sale, the director 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible 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 stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $200,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 14,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,800,000. This represents a 6.67% 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 sold 81,550 shares of company stock worth $16,922,744 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

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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