Wedbush Securities Inc. Has $4.19 Million Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Key Points

• Wedbush Securities increased its Booking Holdings stake by 2,396.2% in the second quarter, bringing its holdings to 23,489 shares valued at approximately $4.19 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.42% of BKNG.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $236.45; ratings include one Strong Buy, 27 Buys, and eight Holds.
• Booking exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.54 in EPS and $7.35 billion in revenue, with revenue rising 8.1% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, representing a 0.8% annualized yield.

Wedbush Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 2,396.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,489 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 22,548 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.'s holdings in Booking were worth $4,187,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its holdings in Booking by 1.7% in the 2nd 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. Mutual Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 246 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,317,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 97 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $518,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Booking by 7.1% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Radnor Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Booking by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 534 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,860,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BKNG. Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. DA Davidson set a $240.00 price target on Booking in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating and set a $250.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $188.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $236.45.

Booking Stock Up 1.5%

NASDAQ BKNG opened at $205.63 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $154.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.76, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $150.14 and a twelve month high of $226.10. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $192.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $177.64.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.The company had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $55.40 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,000,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 16,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,200,000. This represents a 23.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total value of $216,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 16,508 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,169,536. This represents a 6.38% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 77,550 shares of company stock valued at $16,112,304. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

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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