Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc Invests $16.77 Million in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Foyston Gordon & Payne initiated a $16.77 million position in Booking Holdings during the second quarter, purchasing 93,349 shares. Booking now represents about 3.6% of the firm’s portfolio, while institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of the stock.
• Booking exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.54 in earnings per share and $7.35 billion in revenue, with revenue up 8.1% year over year. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $235.72.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, implying a 0.8% annual yield. Meanwhile, insiders sold approximately $26.3 million of stock over the past 90 days, though the transactions were made under pre-arranged trading plans.

Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc bought a new stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 93,349 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $16,768,000. Booking accounts for approximately 3.6% of Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Booking by 3,475.0% during the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 143 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Booking by 3,550.0% during the second quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 146 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Camelot Portfolios LLC bought a new position in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Osbon Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Booking during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, First Financial Corp IN grew its stake in Booking by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 150 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of Booking stock opened at $209.62 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $157.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $188.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $177.00. Booking Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $150.14 and a one year high of $231.80.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.19 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.Booking's quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $55.40 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Booking's payout ratio is 18.58%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 375 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.00, for a total transaction of $79,125.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,404,063. The trade was a 2.27% decrease in their position. The transaction 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 company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total transaction of $206,700.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,100,500. The trade was a 6.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 140,050 shares of company stock worth $26,341,680. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on BKNG shares. B. Riley Financial reissued a "buy" rating and set a $274.00 price objective (up from $264.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $236.00 target price (up from $225.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $240.00 price target (up from $215.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $220.00 price objective on Booking and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $235.72.

Booking Company Profile

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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