Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Stake Lessened by First National Trust Co

Key Points

• First National Trust Co reduced its stake in Booking Holdings by 17.7%, selling 388 shares and holding a total of 1,809 shares valued at $8.33 million at the end of the quarter.
• CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares for approximately $5.77 million, indicating a 3.66% decrease in his ownership in the company.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for Booking, with JPMorgan Chase increasing it from $5,360 to $6,000, contributing to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

First National Trust Co reduced its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 17.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,809 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 388 shares during the period. First National Trust Co's holdings in Booking were worth $8,334,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 2,362,892 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings 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 worth $516,900,000 after acquiring an additional 104,780 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings 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 worth $482,081,000 after acquiring an additional 67,562 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Booking by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 368,628 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,831,499,000 after purchasing an additional 58,357 shares during the period. Finally, Winslow Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Booking by 132.7% during the fourth quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC now owns 88,754 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $440,967,000 after purchasing an additional 50,605 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Booking news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,695.00, for a total transaction of $5,769,035.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 26,633 shares in the company, valued at approximately $151,674,935. The trade was a 3.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,039 shares of company stock worth $16,963,769. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG traded down $117.77 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $5,386.29. The company had a trading volume of 199,536 shares, compared to its average volume of 184,546. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $3,180.00 and a 12 month high of $5,839.41. The stock has a market cap of $174.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.46, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.41. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $5,568.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5,074.51.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $55.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%. Booking's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $41.90 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday. Truist Financial upped their price objective 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. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Booking from $5,750.00 to $6,500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley set a $5,650.00 price target on Booking and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Booking from $5,700.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Booking has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $5,781.04.

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.