Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Shares Bought by Greenleaf Trust

Greenleaf Trust grew its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 2,334.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 70,820 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 67,911 shares during the quarter. Greenleaf Trust’s holdings in Booking were worth $12,623,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in BKNG. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the second quarter valued at approximately $11,687,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 2,860.8% during the second quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 12,554 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,238,000 after purchasing an additional 12,130 shares in the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter worth approximately $361,463,000. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Booking by 1,663.9% in the 2nd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 28,698 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,115,000 after purchasing an additional 27,071 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rit Capital Partners PLC acquired a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $51,396,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total transaction of $4,220,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,618,327.82. This trade represents a 25.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 50,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.59, for a total transaction of $10,389,879.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 375,025 shares in the company, valued at $77,851,439.75. The trade was a 11.77% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 77,550 shares of company stock worth $16,112,304 in the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Booking Stock Up 1.5%

NASDAQ BKNG opened at $205.63 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $192.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.64. The firm has a market cap of $154.51 billion, a PE ratio of 22.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $150.14 and a 52 week high of $226.10.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Booking had a net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. The firm had revenue of $7.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.19 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $55.40 earnings per share. Booking’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKNG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on shares of Booking from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $274.00 target price (up from $264.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 target price (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Booking from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Booking has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $236.45.

About Booking

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.