LGT Group Foundation Increases Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Key Points

• LGT Group Foundation increased its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. by 12.1%, acquiring an additional 2,951 shares, bringing their total to 27,416 shares worth approximately $126.3 million.
• Several analysts have boosted their target prices for Booking Holdings, with UBS recently raising it to $6,300, while B. Riley set a new objective of $6,700.
• Booking has declared a quarterly dividend of $9.60 per share, with a payout ratio of 26.71%, indicating a dividend yield of 0.7%.

LGT Group Foundation raised its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 12.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,416 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,951 shares during the period. Booking makes up approximately 1.7% of LGT Group Foundation's holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. LGT Group Foundation owned approximately 0.08% of Booking worth $126,303,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the 1st quarter worth approximately $41,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. North Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Booking during the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Mechanics Financial Corp purchased a new stake in Booking during the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG traded up $36.85 during trading on Thursday, hitting $5,484.77. The stock had a trading volume of 179,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 203,243. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $3,592.28 and a 12-month high of $5,839.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $177.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $5,562.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5,115.58.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $55.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $50.32 by $5.08. Booking had a negative return on equity of 134.19% and a net margin of 19.23%. The firm had revenue of $6.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.54 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $41.90 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $9.60 per share. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. Booking's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on BKNG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Booking from $5,360.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating and set a $6,000.00 price target (up previously from $5,700.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. DA Davidson increased their price target on Booking from $5,750.00 to $6,500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Citigroup increased their price target on Booking from $5,560.00 to $6,500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, JMP Securities increased their price target on Booking from $5,600.00 to $5,700.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Booking has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $5,781.04.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,695.00, for a total transaction of $5,769,035.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 26,633 shares in the company, valued at approximately $151,674,935. This trade represents a 3.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 3,039 shares of company stock worth $16,963,769 in the last three months. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Booking

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.