Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Acquires Shares of 4,973 Expedia Group, Inc. $EXPE

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 4,973 shares of the online travel company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,063,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EXPE. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in Expedia Group during the 4th quarter valued at $408,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Expedia Group by 5.0% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,455 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $917,000 after buying an additional 259 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Expedia Group in the second quarter valued at about $596,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in Expedia Group by 70.7% in the second quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,275 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $1,059,000 after acquiring an additional 2,598 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in Expedia Group by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,413 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $1,082,000 after acquiring an additional 404 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Lance A. Soliday sold 849 shares of Expedia Group stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.08, for a total transaction of $210,619.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 11,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,893,108.96. The trade was a 6.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Craig A. Jacobson sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.55, for a total transaction of $814,650.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 30,858 shares in the company, valued at $8,379,489.90. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,849 shares of company stock valued at $1,283,270. Insiders own 9.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EXPE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $206.00 to $281.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Susquehanna upped their target price on Expedia Group from $200.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Barclays increased their target price on Expedia Group from $220.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on Expedia Group from $220.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, UBS Group set a $270.00 price objective on Expedia Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and twenty-two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Expedia Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $289.13.

Expedia Group Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:EXPE opened at $271.14 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $275.08 and its 200 day moving average is $233.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.74. Expedia Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $130.01 and a 1 year high of $303.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.43.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The online travel company reported $7.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.10 by $0.47. Expedia Group had a return on equity of 64.15% and a net margin of 9.66%.The business had revenue of $4.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.13 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 19th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Expedia Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.31%.

Expedia Group Company Profile

Expedia Group (NASDAQ: EXPE) is a global travel technology company that operates an online marketplace connecting consumers, travel suppliers and third‑party partners. The company’s platform enables search, comparison and booking of travel products and services, including hotels, airline tickets, vacation rentals, car rentals, cruises and packaged travel. Its portfolio comprises consumer-facing travel brands as well as corporate travel solutions and technology services that serve both leisure and business travelers.

Key offerings include consumer booking platforms and mobile apps that aggregate inventory from hotels, vacation rental managers, airlines and car rental companies, alongside ancillary travel services such as trip insurance and activities.