VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Takes Position in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems acquired 401,590 Booking Holdings shares worth approximately $71.6 million, giving it about a 0.05% stake; institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of the company.
• Booking insiders sold 81,550 shares valued at roughly $16.9 million over the past three months, including significant sales by the CFO and another insider under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.
• Booking reported quarterly EPS and revenue above analyst expectations, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $236.70; the company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 401,590 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $71,579,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al owned about 0.05% of Booking as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in Booking by 1.7% in the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 121 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Booking by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 45 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 534 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,860,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the period. MJP Associates Inc. ADV grew its stake in Booking by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 52 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 158 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $846,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Booking

In other news, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total value of $4,220,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 59,794 shares in the company, valued at $12,618,327.82. This trade represents a 25.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Paulo Pisano sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.48, for a total transaction of $610,440.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 73,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,935,432. This represents a 3.93% 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 sold a total of 81,550 shares of company stock valued at $16,922,744 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Benchmark raised their target price on Booking from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $215.00 price objective on Booking and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $270.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Two equities research analysts have 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $236.70.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $193.29 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $145.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.07. The business's 50 day moving average is $194.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $178.60. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $150.14 and a 12-month high of $226.10.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $7.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.19 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.The business's 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 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 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. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Booking's payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

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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