OP Asset Management Ltd Makes New $32.05 Million Investment in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• OP Asset Management Ltd opened a new position in Booking Holdings during the first quarter, buying 7,612 shares valued at about $32.05 million.
• Booking reported quarterly earnings of $1.14 per share, topping estimates, on $5.53 billion in revenue, which was up 16.2% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share and received a Moderate Buy consensus rating from analysts, with a consensus price target of $227.14.

OP Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 7,612 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $32,049,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC purchased a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Camelot Portfolios LLC acquired a new stake in Booking during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Osbon Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Booking Stock Performance

Booking stock opened at $180.84 on Thursday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $150.14 and a twelve month high of $233.58. The firm has a market cap of $140.13 billion, a PE ratio of 23.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.08. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $169.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $182.94.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $5.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.99 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Booking's payout ratio is 22.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on BKNG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Booking from $226.00 to $223.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Booking from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $260.00 price objective (up from $244.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Piper Sandler set a $195.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Booking from $230.00 to $220.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Booking has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $227.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other Booking news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total value of $216,000.00. Following 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 16,726 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.36, for a total value of $3,100,331.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 298,174 shares of the company's stock, valued at $55,269,532.64. This trade represents a 5.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 80,351 shares of company stock worth $13,545,706 over the last 90 days. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Booking Company 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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