ING Groep NV Purchases 25,643 Shares of Expedia Group, Inc. $EXPE

Key Points

• ING Groep NV boosted its Expedia Group stake by 167.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 25,643 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 40,922 shares worth about $11.6 million.
• Other major institutional investors have also been active in EXPE, with several adding positions; overall, institutional ownership stands at 90.76% of the company.
• Expedia reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.96 versus estimates of $1.41 and revenue of $3.43 billion, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with a $284.42 price target.

ING Groep NV grew its position in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE - Free Report) by 167.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 40,922 shares of the online travel company's stock after buying an additional 25,643 shares during the period. ING Groep NV's holdings in Expedia Group were worth $11,594,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Windacre Partnership LLC increased its position in Expedia Group by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Windacre Partnership LLC now owns 3,682,100 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $787,049,000 after buying an additional 309,900 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Expedia Group by 25.0% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,645,732 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $779,275,000 after buying an additional 728,063 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Expedia Group by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,122,842 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $667,507,000 after buying an additional 230,176 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Expedia Group during the 4th quarter worth $861,979,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Expedia Group by 24,899.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,808,466 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $386,560,000 after buying an additional 1,801,232 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.76% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on EXPE. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Expedia Group in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Dbs Bank raised Expedia Group from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Expedia Group from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Expedia Group from $310.00 to $307.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Expedia Group in a report on Monday, February 9th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twenty-three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Expedia Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $284.42.

Expedia Group Stock Performance

EXPE opened at $228.88 on Monday. The business's fifty day moving average is $234.33 and its 200-day moving average is $247.79. The firm has a market cap of $28.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.73. Expedia Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.00 and a 52-week high of $303.80.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The online travel company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.55. The business had revenue of $3.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. Expedia Group had a return on equity of 84.33% and a net margin of 9.81%.Expedia Group's revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.40 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 17.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 28th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 28th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Expedia Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Lance A. Soliday sold 940 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.86, for a total value of $208,548.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 14,083 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,124,454.38. This trade represents a 6.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 5.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Expedia Group Profile

Expedia Group NASDAQ: EXPE is a global travel technology company that operates an online marketplace connecting consumers, travel suppliers and third‑party partners. The company's platform enables search, comparison and booking of travel products and services, including hotels, airline tickets, vacation rentals, car rentals, cruises and packaged travel. Its portfolio comprises consumer-facing travel brands as well as corporate travel solutions and technology services that serve both leisure and business travelers.

Key offerings include consumer booking platforms and mobile apps that aggregate inventory from hotels, vacation rental managers, airlines and car rental companies, alongside ancillary travel services such as trip insurance and activities.

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