Meeder Asset Management Inc. Grows Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 1,224.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 967 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 894 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Booking were worth $3,430,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BKNG. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter worth about $1,068,137,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Booking by 3,557.5% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 142,166 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $333,870,000 after acquiring an additional 138,279 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Booking by 61.6% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 295,891 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $596,303,000 after acquiring an additional 112,831 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in Booking by 2,479.0% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 116,777 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $414,234,000 after buying an additional 112,249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at about $222,919,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Booking Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of Booking stock traded up $79.97 during trading on Friday, hitting $3,601.90. The stock had a trading volume of 253,069 shares, compared to its average volume of 271,383. The firm has a market cap of $123.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.40. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,456.93 and a 12 month high of $3,918.00. The business's 50-day moving average is $3,593.88 and its 200 day moving average is $3,340.01.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The business services provider reported $32.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $29.72 by $2.28. The firm had revenue of $4.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.71 billion. Booking had a net margin of 20.08% and a negative return on equity of 751.49%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $24.74 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 175.86 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. Booking's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on BKNG shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Booking from $3,548.00 to $3,435.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. StockNews.com lowered Booking from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Seaport Res Ptn reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Booking in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. B. Riley initiated coverage on Booking in a research report on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $4,400.00 target price for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Booking in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $4,150.00 price objective for the company. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $3,723.41.

Insider Activity at Booking

In other Booking news, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 59 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,700.00, for a total transaction of $218,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 289 shares in the company, valued at $1,069,300. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CFO David I. Goulden sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,494.47, for a total transaction of $3,494,470.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,204 shares in the company, valued at $35,657,571.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 59 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,700.00, for a total transaction of $218,300.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 289 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,069,300. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 6,467 shares of company stock valued at $22,299,114 over the last 90 days. 0.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc, formerly The Priceline Group Inc, is a provider of travel and restaurant online reservation and related services. The Company, through its online travel companies (OTCs), connects consumers wishing to make travel reservations with providers of travel services across the world. It offers consumers an array of accommodation reservations (including hotels, bed and breakfasts, hostels, apartments, vacation rentals and other properties) through its Booking.com, priceline.com and agoda.com brands.