Tema ETFs LLC Raises Stock Position in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Tema ETFs LLC grew its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 2,669.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,925 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 14,386 shares during the period. Tema ETFs LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $2,660,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Booking by 34.9% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 251 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,249,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter worth about $209,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 25.0% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $955,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its position in shares of Booking by 50.0% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 87 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $504,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Booking during the second quarter worth about $179,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Stock Performance

BKNG stock opened at $212.26 on Thursday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $150.14 and a one year high of $231.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $159.49 billion, a PE ratio of 23.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a fifty day moving average of $182.16 and a 200-day moving average of $176.92.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.The company had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $55.40 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued 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 of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BKNG. Truist Financial set a $242.00 target price on Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $236.00 price target (up from $225.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $220.00 price objective on Booking and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Mizuho set a $240.00 target price 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 issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.72.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,000,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 16,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,200,000. The trade was a 23.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total transaction of $216,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 16,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,169,536. The trade was a 6.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 69,625 shares of company stock worth $11,652,075. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.