Greenleaf Trust Reduces Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Greenleaf Trust cut its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 42.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,074 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 2,266 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust's holdings in Booking were worth $14,162,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Booking in the 1st quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, North Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Booking in the 1st quarter worth about $46,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BKNG. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Booking from $4,692.00 to $5,411.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Booking from $5,000.00 to $4,800.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Booking from $5,360.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Booking from $5,000.00 to $5,700.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, BTIG Research upgraded Booking from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $5,500.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Booking presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $5,415.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,356.07, for a total value of $5,425,698.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 27,646 shares in the company, valued at approximately $148,073,911.22. The trade was a 3.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Booking Stock Performance

BKNG stock traded down $1.41 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $5,717.10. 150,915 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 248,627. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $5,437.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $4,994.66. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $3,180.00 and a 52 week high of $5,839.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $186.03 billion, a PE ratio of 35.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $24.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $17.57 by $7.24. Booking had a net margin of 22.58% and a negative return on equity of 143.67%. The business had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $20.39 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were issued a $9.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.67%. Booking's payout ratio is currently 23.89%.

Booking 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.