Erste Asset Management GmbH Grows Stock Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Erste Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 17.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 28,731 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,343 shares during the period. Booking comprises 1.3% of Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Erste Asset Management GmbH owned about 0.09% of Booking worth $155,490,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Camelot Portfolios LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG opened at $165.84 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $169.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $184.97. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $150.14 and a 1 year high of $233.58. The company has a market capitalization of $128.51 billion, a PE ratio of 21.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.08.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.06. Booking had a net margin of 22.23% and a negative return on equity of 117.14%. The business had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.44 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Booking’s payout ratio is presently 22.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total value of $216,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 16,050 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,081,600. The trade was a 6.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the vice president owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,572,025.25. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 97,076 shares of company stock worth $16,417,121. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BKNG has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Booking from $224.00 to $208.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays set a $210.00 price objective on shares of Booking and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Booking from $240.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Tigress Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $260.00 price target (up from $244.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Booking from $226.00 to $223.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $227.14.

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.