Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of Expedia Group from $334.00 to $417.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Rosenblatt Securities began coverage on shares of Expedia Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $360.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $370.00 target price on shares of Expedia Group in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Benchmark boosted their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $290.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $316.79.

Expedia Group Stock Performance

Shares of EXPE stock opened at $279.35 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $298.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $259.68. Expedia Group has a twelve month low of $185.34 and a twelve month high of $342.00. The company has a market capitalization of $33.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The online travel company reported $5.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.22 by $0.54. Expedia Group had a return on equity of 87.32% and a net margin of 12.97%.The business had revenue of $4.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.24 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Expedia Group will post 17.14 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Craig A. Jacobson sold 3,133 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.52, for a total value of $1,029,253.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 29,832 shares in the company, valued at $9,800,408.64. This trade represents a 9.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 1,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.00, for a total transaction of $336,340.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 104,331 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,950,885. This trade represents a 0.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,950 shares of company stock worth $3,881,995. Corporate insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Bancorp Inc ME acquired a new stake in shares of Expedia Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Expedia Group by 272.9% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 179 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Cache Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Expedia Group during the first quarter worth $48,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co boosted its position in Expedia Group by 1,147.1% during the first quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 212 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Expedia Group by 35.2% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 219 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. 90.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Expedia Group

Expedia Group, Inc is an online travel company that connects travelers with lodging, transportation, activities and other travel-related services. Its consumer brands include Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo, Travelocity, Orbitz, Wotif and ebookers. Through these platforms, customers can search for and book hotel stays, vacation rentals, flights, rental cars, cruises, vacation packages and activities.

The company also provides business-to-business travel technology and booking services through its partnerships with airlines, hotels, financial institutions, retailers and other organizations.