Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Shares Bought by Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership

Key Points

• Arrowstreet Capital increased its Booking Holdings stake by 20% in the first quarter, buying 43,602 additional shares and bringing its position to 261,383 shares worth about $1.1 billion.
• Booking reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.14 versus the $1.08 estimate and revenue of $5.53 billion, up 16.2% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally positive on the stock despite some target cuts, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $227.05.

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 20.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 261,383 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 43,602 shares during the period. Booking accounts for approximately 0.6% of Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership's portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership's holdings in Booking were worth $1,100,506,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC purchased a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Camelot Portfolios LLC acquired a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Osbon Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Booking Stock Performance

Booking stock opened at $172.83 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $150.14 and a fifty-two week high of $231.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $133.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.07. The stock's fifty day moving average is $171.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $178.12.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.06. Booking had a negative return on equity of 117.14% and a net margin of 22.23%.The business had revenue of $5.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.99 EPS. The business's revenue was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Booking's payout ratio is presently 22.11%.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In other Booking news, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total transaction of $10,229,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,572,025.25. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on BKNG shares. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and issued a $230.00 target price (down from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Booking from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Booking from $234.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered Booking from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, March 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Booking from $244.00 to $220.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $227.05.

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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