Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. Decreases Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. trimmed its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,902 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 400 shares during the quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. owned 0.05% of Booking worth $63,502,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Booking by 8.8% during the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 15,301 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $47,188,000 after purchasing an additional 1,236 shares during the period. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 0.6% in the third quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. now owns 4,390 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $13,539,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp bought a new position in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter worth about $24,841,000. Advisor Resource Council grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 382.4% in the fourth quarter. Advisor Resource Council now owns 357 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,266,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NatWest Group plc grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. NatWest Group plc now owns 3,415 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $12,114,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on BKNG. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Booking from $3,548.00 to $3,435.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Booking from $3,600.00 to $4,100.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,000.00 to $4,200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Booking in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $4,150.00 price objective for the company. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $3,723.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,493.71, for a total value of $2,620,282.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 34,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $121,888,554.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,493.71, for a total transaction of $2,620,282.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 34,888 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $121,888,554.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 4,302 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,422.75, for a total transaction of $14,724,670.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 33,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $114,826,417. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,467 shares of company stock worth $22,299,114. 0.15% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Booking Price Performance

NASDAQ:BKNG traded down $106.07 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $3,531.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 240,962 shares, compared to its average volume of 252,772. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,456.93 and a fifty-two week high of $3,918.00. The firm's 50 day moving average is $3,597.92 and its 200-day moving average is $3,356.38. The firm has a market cap of $120.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last issued 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. Booking had a net margin of 20.08% and a negative return on equity of 751.49%. The company had revenue of $4.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $24.74 EPS. Booking's quarterly revenue was up 18.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 175.86 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. Booking's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.67%.

Booking 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.