Groupe la Francaise Acquires 184,200 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Groupe la Française significantly increased its Booking Holdings stake, buying 184,200 additional shares in the second quarter and ending with 199,660 shares valued at approximately $35.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of the company.
• Booking reported quarterly EPS of $2.54 and revenue of $7.35 billion, exceeding analyst expectations, while revenue increased 8.1% year over year. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $236.70.
• Booking declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, equivalent to a $1.68 annualized payout and a 0.9% yield. Meanwhile, insiders have sold 81,550 shares worth approximately $16.9 million over the past 90 days.

Groupe la Francaise grew its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 1,191.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 199,660 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 184,200 shares during the quarter. Groupe la Francaise's holdings in Booking were worth $35,543,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Booking by 419,256.0% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 214,651,580 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $38,259,498,000 after purchasing an additional 214,600,394 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Booking in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $11,646,302,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in Booking in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,691,186,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Booking during the 2nd quarter worth $1,370,455,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Booking by 2,525.5% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,101,866 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,087,597,000 after buying an additional 5,869,459 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Booking Price Performance

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $193.29 on Monday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $150.14 and a 12-month high of $226.10. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $194.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $178.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $145.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.07.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.19 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.The company's revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $55.40 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Booking's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BKNG has been the subject of several research reports. Rosenblatt Securities initiated coverage on Booking in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $245.00 target price for the company. B. Riley Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $274.00 price target (up from $264.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on Booking from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $236.70.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other Booking news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.48, for a total value of $610,440.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 73,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,935,432. This trade represents a 3.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, 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 5,000 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,000,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 16,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,200,000. This represents a 23.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 81,550 shares of company stock worth $16,922,744 over the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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