J. Stern & Co. LLP Has $15.17 Billion Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• J. Stern & Co. LLP massively increased its Booking Holdings stake, lifting its position by 191,965.8% in the fourth quarter to 2,832,970 shares. The stake was valued at about $15.17 billion and represented 8.95% of the fund’s portfolio.
• Booking delivered solid quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.14 versus the $1.08 consensus and revenue of $5.53 billion, up 16.2% year over year. Analysts expect the company to earn 10.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.
• Insiders sold shares recently and analysts remain cautiously positive, with one director and one vice president making sizable sales over the last 90 days. The stock has a Moderate Buy rating overall, with an average price target of $227.14.

J. Stern & Co. LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 191,965.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,832,970 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,831,495 shares during the period. Booking makes up 4.6% of J. Stern & Co. LLP's holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. J. Stern & Co. LLP owned 8.95% of Booking worth $15,171,489,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Monetary Management Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Booking by 1.1% during the third quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. now owns 188 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,015,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Elgethun Capital Management increased its position in shares of Booking by 2.1% during the third quarter. Elgethun Capital Management now owns 97 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $517,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. First Western Trust Bank increased its position in shares of Booking by 3.4% during the third quarter. First Western Trust Bank now owns 60 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. CGN Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. CGN Advisors LLC now owns 57 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Howard Financial Services LTD. increased its position in shares of Booking by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 140 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $750,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total transaction of $216,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,081,600. This represents a 6.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total transaction of $10,229,375.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 425,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $69,572,025.25. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their position. 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 80,351 shares of company stock valued at $13,545,706. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $175.72 on Wednesday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $150.14 and a 52-week high of $233.58. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $169.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $183.94. The company has a market capitalization of $136.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.11, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.08.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.06. Booking had a net margin of 22.23% and a negative return on equity of 117.14%. The business had revenue of $5.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.52 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.99 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Booking's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on BKNG shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Booking from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 29th. Gordon Haskett boosted their target price on shares of Booking from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Booking in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $215.00 target price on shares of Booking and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Booking from $234.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $227.14.

Booking 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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