Tidal Investments LLC Has $43.03 Million Stock Position in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Tidal Investments increased its Booking Holdings stake by 1,951.2% in the second quarter, owning 223,168 shares valued at approximately $43.03 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of Booking’s stock.
• Analysts maintain a positive outlook, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $236.70. Booking also exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $2.54 EPS and $7.35 billion in revenue.
• Booking’s travel demand remains resilient, but the company lost its legal challenge against the EU’s veto of its ETraveli acquisition. Insiders sold 81,550 shares worth approximately $16.9 million over the past 90 days.

Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 1,951.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 223,168 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 212,288 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC's holdings in Booking were worth $43,030,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG acquired a new stake in Booking during the 2nd quarter valued at $11,687,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC boosted its stake in Booking by 2,860.8% in the second quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 12,554 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,238,000 after purchasing an additional 12,130 shares in the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new position in Booking in the fourth quarter worth $361,463,000. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 1,663.9% during the second quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 28,698 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,115,000 after purchasing an additional 27,071 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Booking by 2,643.0% in the second quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 527,425 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $94,008,000 after buying an additional 508,197 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial set a $242.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Booking from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. B. Riley Financial reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $274.00 price target (up from $264.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $236.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Booking news, Director Vanessa Wittman sold 375 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.00, for a total value of $79,125.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,404,063. This represents a 2.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through 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 that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total transaction of $4,220,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,794 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,618,327.82. The trade was a 25.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 81,550 shares of company stock valued at $16,922,744 in the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Booking News

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Travel demand remains relatively resilient despite geopolitical conflicts and a slower macroeconomic environment, supporting the outlook for Booking’s accommodation and travel-reservation businesses. Booking Holdings Stock: A Travel Stock to Buy Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst-oriented coverage continues to characterize Booking as a growth stock, reflecting its scale, profitability and potential for continued expansion in online travel. The company’s most recent reported quarter also exceeded earnings and revenue expectations, providing fundamental support. Why Booking Holdings Is a Strong Growth Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Booking executives recently participated in Goldman Sachs and Citi technology conferences. The transcripts may provide insight into demand trends, artificial intelligence, competition and capital allocation, but the available headlines do not identify a specific new forecast or material change in guidance. Goldman Sachs Conference Transcript Citi Conference Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: The European court rejected Booking’s challenge to the EU veto of its ETraveli acquisition, effectively ending the company’s effort to purchase the flight-booking platform. The ruling removes a potential avenue for expansion and could weigh on investor sentiment regarding Booking’s regulatory exposure and acquisition strategy. Booking Loses Court Fight Against EU Veto of ETraveli Deal

Booking Price Performance

BKNG opened at $173.43 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $130.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $194.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $178.77. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $150.14 and a fifty-two week high of $225.00.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.19 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $55.40 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. 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 1.0%. Booking's payout ratio is 18.58%.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global provider of online travel and related services. The company connects consumers with accommodations, flights, rental cars, restaurants and travel experiences through a portfolio of digital brands and websites.

Its principal brands include Booking.com, which offers lodging, transportation and travel experiences; Priceline, which provides online booking services for hotels, flights, rental cars and vacation packages; Agoda, which focuses primarily on travel bookings in Asia and other international markets; KAYAK, a travel metasearch engine; OpenTable, a restaurant reservation and management platform; and Rentalcars.com, a global car rental service.

Booking Holdings serves customers, travel providers and restaurants across numerous countries and regions, with a particularly extensive international presence.

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