RiverPark Advisors LLC Buys 14,970 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• RiverPark Advisors sharply increased its Booking Holdings stake by purchasing 14,970 shares in the second quarter, bringing its holdings to 15,636 shares valued at approximately $2.8 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of BKNG.
• Booking reported quarterly EPS of $2.54 and revenue of $7.35 billion, exceeding analyst estimates, while revenue increased 8.1% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, representing a 0.8% yield.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $235.72. However, company insiders sold 89,625 shares worth about $15.9 million over the past three months.

RiverPark Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 2,247.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,636 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 14,970 shares during the period. Booking comprises about 1.3% of RiverPark Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding. RiverPark Advisors LLC's holdings in Booking were worth $2,787,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. J. Stern & Co. LLP increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 191,965.8% during the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 2,832,970 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $15,171,489,000 after buying an additional 2,831,495 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in shares of Booking by 1,497.3% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 870,520 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,665,168,000 after acquiring an additional 816,022 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Booking by 66,209.8% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 659,783 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $117,600,000 after acquiring an additional 658,788 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in Booking by 2,548.6% during the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 649,602 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $115,785,000 after acquiring an additional 625,076 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Booking during the 4th quarter worth $3,271,041,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Booking Stock Down 0.6%

NASDAQ BKNG opened at $212.06 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $159.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.47, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $150.14 and a twelve month high of $231.80. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $184.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $176.84.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.19 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $55.40 EPS. Research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Booking's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total value of $4,220,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,794 shares in the company, valued at $12,618,327.82. This represents a 25.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total transaction of $10,229,375.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 425,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at $69,572,025.25. This represents a 12.82% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 89,625 shares of company stock valued at $15,872,675 over the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKNG has been the subject of several research reports. Wedbush increased their target price on Booking from $211.00 to $247.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $215.00 price target on Booking and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. DA Davidson set a $240.00 price target on Booking in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Gordon Haskett upped their price objective on Booking from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.72.

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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