Empire Life Investments Inc. Makes New $11.96 Million Investment in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Key Points

• Empire Life Investments Inc. acquired 2,596 shares of Booking Holdings Inc., valued at approximately $11.96 million, during the first quarter.
• Booking reported $55.40 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $50.32, with revenue reaching $6.80 billion, up 16% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $9.60 per share, payable on September 30th, reflecting a 0.7% dividend yield and a payout ratio of 26.71%.

Empire Life Investments Inc. purchased a new position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 2,596 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $11,960,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Booking by 521,609.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,363,345 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $10,887,718,000 after buying an additional 2,362,892 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Booking by 1,411.9% in the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 112,201 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $516,900,000 after buying an additional 104,780 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc grew its stake in Booking by 182.2% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 104,643 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $482,081,000 after buying an additional 67,562 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Booking by 18.8% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 368,628 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,831,499,000 after buying an additional 58,357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Winslow Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Booking by 132.7% in the 4th quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC now owns 88,754 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $440,967,000 after buying an additional 50,605 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Booking Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG traded up $78.45 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $5,536.31. 198,984 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 196,817. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $3,291.80 and a 1-year high of $5,839.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $5,571.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5,084.15. The firm has a market cap of $179.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.50, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.41.

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

Booking Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKNG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Booking to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of Booking from $5,600.00 to $5,700.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Booking from $5,550.00 to $5,700.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Booking from $5,560.00 to $6,500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $5,781.04.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,695.00, for a total value of $5,769,035.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 26,633 shares in the company, valued at $151,674,935. This represents a 3.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 3,039 shares of company stock worth $16,963,769 in the last ninety days. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Booking

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.