Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Reduces Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI cut its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 86.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 433 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,803 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Booking were worth $1,823,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Booking in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC purchased a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Camelot Portfolios LLC purchased a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Osbon Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In related news, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total value of $10,229,375.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at $69,572,025.25. This represents a 12.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Booking from $248.00 to $240.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wedbush started coverage on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday, July 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $211.00 price objective for the company. DA Davidson cut their price objective on Booking from $240.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $215.00 target price on Booking and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $195.00 target price on Booking in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $227.05.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG opened at $179.40 on Wednesday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $150.14 and a 1 year high of $231.80. The stock has a market cap of $139.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $170.69 and a 200 day moving average of $178.71.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.52 billion. Booking had a net margin of 22.23% and a negative return on equity of 117.14%. The business’s revenue was up 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.99 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. Booking’s payout ratio is currently 22.11%.

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.