Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Acquires 110,641 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management increased its Booking Holdings stake by 1,421.8% in the second quarter, acquiring 110,641 additional shares valued at approximately $21.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a bullish outlook, with Booking receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $235.72, above its reported share price of $213.34.
• Booking exceeded quarterly expectations with $2.54 in earnings per share and $7.35 billion in revenue, up 8.1% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42, while insiders have sold $15.9 million worth of stock over the past 90 days.

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 1,421.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 118,423 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 110,641 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd's holdings in Booking were worth $21,108,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Drive Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Booking by 1,874.8% in the second quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,140 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $560,000 after acquiring an additional 2,981 shares during the period. SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. raised its stake in Booking by 3,241.6% during the second quarter. SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. now owns 6,984 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,274,000 after acquiring an additional 6,775 shares in the last quarter. JM2 Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,413.1% during the second quarter. JM2 Capital Inc. now owns 4,423 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $788,000 after acquiring an additional 4,247 shares during the period. North Growth Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,200.0% during the second quarter. North Growth Management Ltd. now owns 92,000 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $16,476,000 after acquiring an additional 88,000 shares during the period. Finally, Landaas & Co. WI ADV boosted its stake in shares of Booking by 2,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Landaas & Co. WI ADV now owns 1,550 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $276,000 after purchasing an additional 1,488 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BKNG shares. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $236.00 target price (up from $225.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Barclays set a $210.00 price target on shares of Booking and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Booking from $244.00 to $220.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating and set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $242.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Booking has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $235.72.

Insider Activity at Booking

In related news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total value of $216,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 16,508 shares in the company, valued at $3,169,536. The trade was a 6.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,618,327.82. This represents a 25.06% 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 89,625 shares of company stock worth $15,872,675. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Booking Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $213.34 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $160.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $150.14 and a 12 month high of $231.80. The company's 50-day moving average price is $183.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $177.00.

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

Booking Announces Dividend

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

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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