Boston Partners Reduces Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Boston Partners lowered its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 14.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 125,796 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 20,674 shares during the period. Boston Partners owned 0.36% of Booking worth $444,847,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in BKNG. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Booking by 2,479.0% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 116,777 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $414,234,000 after purchasing an additional 112,249 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,774,850,000. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Booking by 139.8% during the third quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 65,179 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $201,166,000 after acquiring an additional 37,994 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Booking by 41.8% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 101,736 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $317,313,000 after purchasing an additional 30,015 shares during the period. Finally, Rathbones Group PLC lifted its holdings in Booking by 161.5% during the 3rd quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 39,215 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $120,937,000 after purchasing an additional 24,219 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Booking from $4,100.00 to $4,150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Edward Jones reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Booking in a research report on Friday, February 16th. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating and set a $4,205.00 price objective (up previously from $4,150.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Bank of America upped their target price on Booking from $3,900.00 to $3,950.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, B. Riley initiated coverage on Booking in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $4,400.00 price target on the stock. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $3,876.96.

Booking Stock Up 0.7 %

BKNG traded up $25.72 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $3,805.75. The company had a trading volume of 282,987 shares, compared to its average volume of 246,927. The company has a market capitalization of $129.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.54, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.40. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $3,544.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $3,433.57. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $2,456.93 and a 52 week high of $3,918.00.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The business services provider reported $20.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $14.03 by $6.36. Booking had a negative return on equity of 288.35% and a net margin of 21.81%. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $11.60 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 16.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 178.54 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $8.75 per share. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. Booking's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.25%.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 227 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,580.75, for a total value of $812,830.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,157,314.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Booking news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 227 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,580.75, for a total transaction of $812,830.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,233 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,157,314.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 28 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,498.29, for a total transaction of $97,952.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 233 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $815,101.57. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,651 shares of company stock valued at $19,485,975 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

About Booking

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.