Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) Stock Breaks Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Expedia shares moved above their 200-day moving average, reaching $268.62 before last trading at $262.67, though the 50-day average remained higher at $298.68.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: the stock has an overall “Hold” rating, with 21 Holds, 18 Buys, and one Sell. The average price target is $316.18, while several firms recently raised their targets as high as $390.
• Expedia reported quarterly results above expectations, with EPS of $5.76 versus $5.22 expected and revenue of $4.32 billion. The company also pays a $0.48 quarterly dividend, while insiders have sold nearly $3.9 million in shares over the past 90 days.

Shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE - Get Free Report) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $261.84 and traded as high as $268.62. Expedia Group shares last traded at $262.67, with a volume of 1,440,560 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on EXPE. Piper Sandler restated a "neutral" rating and set a $325.00 price objective (up from $245.00) on shares of Expedia Group in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Expedia Group in a report on Thursday, August 6th. B. Riley Financial lifted their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $350.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. TD Cowen raised shares of Expedia Group to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Expedia Group from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $316.18.

Expedia Group Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $298.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $261.84. The stock has a market cap of $31.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.36.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The online travel company reported $5.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.22 by $0.54. The company had revenue of $4.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.17 billion. Expedia Group had a net margin of 12.97% and a return on equity of 87.32%. The firm's revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.24 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 17.26 EPS for the current year.

Expedia Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 27th were paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 27th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Expedia Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Expedia Group

In other news, Director Craig Jacobson sold 3,133 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $328.52, for a total transaction of $1,029,253.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 29,832 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,800,408.64. This represents a 9.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Robert Dzielak sold 1,004 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.00, for a total value of $336,340.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 104,331 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $34,950,885. The trade was a 0.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 11,950 shares of company stock valued at $3,881,995 in the last 90 days. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Expedia Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Expedia Group by 15.2% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,112 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $1,564,000 after purchasing an additional 808 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its position in Expedia Group by 8.2% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 2,349 shares of the online travel company's stock valued at $601,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Andra AP fonden grew its position in Expedia Group by 46.7% in the second quarter. Andra AP fonden now owns 98,073 shares of the online travel company's stock valued at $25,095,000 after purchasing an additional 31,200 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in Expedia Group by 47.4% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 32,146 shares of the online travel company's stock valued at $8,226,000 after buying an additional 10,331 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Archford Capital Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Expedia Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $255,000. 90.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Expedia Group

Expedia Group, Inc is an online travel company that connects travelers with a broad range of travel products and services. Its platforms support the search, comparison and booking of lodging, air travel, car rentals, cruises, vacation packages, activities and other travel-related offerings.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that includes Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo, Travelocity, Orbitz, Wotif and ebookers. Through these brands, Expedia Group serves individual travelers, property owners, travel suppliers and business partners across markets in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and other international regions.

Expedia Group traces its origins to Expedia, which was established within Microsoft in 1996 and became an independent public company in 1999.

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