National Pension Service Trims Position in Expedia Group, Inc. $EXPE

Key Points

• The National Pension Service has reduced its stake in Expedia Group, Inc. by 2.4%, now holding approximately 231,283 shares valued at $38.9 million.
• Analysts are optimistic about Expedia Group, with several firms upgrading their ratings; the stock currently carries a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $205.63.
• Expedia Group announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, with an annualized yield of 0.8%, reflecting a 19.61% payout ratio.

National Pension Service reduced its position in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE - Free Report) by 2.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 231,283 shares of the online travel company's stock after selling 5,607 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.18% of Expedia Group worth $38,879,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Altman Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Expedia Group by 0.5% during the first quarter. Altman Advisors Inc. now owns 13,338 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $2,093,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Expedia Group by 14.1% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 558 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc raised its holdings in Expedia Group by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc now owns 22,135 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $4,124,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC raised its holdings in Expedia Group by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 2,430 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $453,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in Expedia Group by 2.9% during the first quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 3,265 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $550,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. 90.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Expedia Group Price Performance

Shares of EXPE stock traded up $1.37 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $208.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,726,019 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,118,797. The business has a fifty day moving average of $180.54 and a 200-day moving average of $174.07. The stock has a market cap of $25.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.61. Expedia Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $126.46 and a twelve month high of $213.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.14.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The online travel company reported $4.24 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.13 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $3.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.70 billion. Expedia Group had a net margin of 7.94% and a return on equity of 56.25%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.51 earnings per share. Expedia Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 EPS for the current year.

Expedia Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 28th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Expedia Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on EXPE shares. Wedbush increased their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Expedia Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $182.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. B. Riley upped their target price on shares of Expedia Group from $222.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated a "positive" rating on shares of Expedia Group in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $205.63.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 3,306 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.84, for a total transaction of $663,977.04. Following the transaction, the insider owned 77,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,479,743. This represents a 4.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 9.13% of the company's stock.

Expedia Group Profile

Expedia Group, Inc operates as an online travel company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through B2C, B2B, and trivago segments. Its B2C segment includes Brand Expedia, a full-service online travel brand offers various travel products and services; Hotels.com for lodging accommodations; Vrbo, an online marketplace for the alternative accommodations; Orbitz, Travelocity, Wotif Group, ebookers, CheapTickets, Hotwire.com and CarRentals.com.