Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. Buys 53 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 7.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 740 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the quarter. Booking accounts for approximately 1.4% of Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.'s holdings in Booking were worth $3,409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Booking by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 31 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $158,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 124 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $616,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 95 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP boosted its holdings in Booking by 20.0% during the 4th quarter. Elequin Capital LP now owns 12 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Booking by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 77 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Booking stock traded up $17.77 on Friday, reaching $5,304.03. The stock had a trading volume of 441,919 shares, compared to its average volume of 248,618. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $3,180.00 and a 1 year high of $5,639.70. The company has a market cap of $172.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.41. The business's 50 day moving average is $5,180.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4,947.25.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $24.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $20.39 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $9.60 dividend. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Booking's payout ratio is 23.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on BKNG. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,100.00 to $5,600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Booking from $5,960.00 to $5,557.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,005.00 to $5,800.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Booking from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,360.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $5,388.37.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 27,646 shares in the company, valued at approximately $148,073,911.22. This represents a 3.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

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.