Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Director Robert Mylod, Jr. Sells 1,000 Shares

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Director Robert Mylod, Jr. sold 1,000 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total value of $206,700.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,100,500. The trade was a 6.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Booking Trading Up 0.2%

NASDAQ BKNG opened at $207.39 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $150.14 and a 12 month high of $231.80. The stock has a market cap of $155.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.07. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $178.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $176.73.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $7.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.19 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.Booking’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $55.40 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid 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 currently 18.58%.

Institutional Trading of Booking

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BKNG. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in Booking by 1.7% during the second 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. Bar Harbor Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Booking by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 611 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,272,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Booking by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Booking by 22.2% during the fourth quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 11 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BLB&B Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 52 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $278,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Booking News

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 earnings and revenue beat expectations: Booking reported adjusted earnings of $2.54 per share versus the $2.43 consensus, while revenue rose 8.1% year over year to $7.35 billion, exceeding estimates of $7.19 billion. Growth in room nights, gross bookings and EBITDA pointed to continued travel demand. Booking Holdings Q2 results top estimates as travel demand remains resilient
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised targets and maintained bullish ratings: UBS lifted its target to $274 and kept a Buy rating, while Wedbush raised its target to $247 with an Outperform rating. Benchmark increased its target to $250, and BTIG reaffirmed its Buy rating with a $250 target. Booking Given New Price Target at UBS Group
• Positive Sentiment: Operational initiatives remain supportive: Management highlighted early benefits from artificial-intelligence personalization, higher savings and growth in its connected-trip offerings, which could support efficiency and longer-term expansion. BKNG Q2 Earnings Call Centers on Resilience, AI and Savings
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend declared: Booking declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, payable September 30 to shareholders of record September 11. The modest 0.8% yield is supportive of shareholder returns but unlikely to materially affect valuation.
• Neutral Sentiment: Director stock sale: Director Robert J. Mylod Jr. sold 1,000 shares worth $206,700 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Because the sale was scheduled in advance and leaves him with 15,000 shares, it is not necessarily a bearish signal. SEC Form 4 filing
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term concerns temper the optimism: Third-quarter revenue guidance was viewed as soft, room-night growth is slowing, and marketing expenses are rising faster than revenue. Geopolitical volatility and competition from Google also remain risks, while some commentary warned that the recent rally has left the stock technically overbought. Why Analysts Are Bullish on a Stock That’s Down 20%

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on BKNG shares. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Booking from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday. HSBC lowered their price objective on Booking from $309.84 to $298.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $234.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Booking from $224.00 to $208.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.69.

Booking Company 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.