Sapient Capital LLC Raises Position in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Sapient Capital LLC grew its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 4,912.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 319,923 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 313,541 shares during the quarter. Booking makes up about 0.7% of Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $57,023,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Booking by 22.2% in the 4th quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 11 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 43 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $232,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 52 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $278,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. Equity Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Equity Wealth Partners LLC now owns 101 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $543,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MBM Wealth Consultants LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 403 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,158,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Booking reported adjusted earnings of $2.54 per share, above the $2.43 consensus estimate, while revenue increased 8.1% year over year to $7.35 billion, surpassing forecasts of $7.19 billion. The results suggested resilient travel demand and helped support the stock’s advance.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst optimism strengthened: UBS raised its price target to $274, while Wedbush, Benchmark and BTIG maintained bullish ratings with targets ranging from $247 to $250. The analyst actions reinforce expectations for additional upside following the earnings report. Booking Given New Price Target at UBS Group
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-term growth initiatives remain supportive: Management cited early benefits from artificial-intelligence personalization, cost savings and its connected-trip strategy, potentially improving efficiency and expanding customer engagement. Is Booking Holdings a Buying Opportunity?
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend provides modest shareholder support: Booking declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, payable September 30 to shareholders of record September 11. The annualized yield of approximately 0.8% is unlikely to materially change the investment case.
• Neutral Sentiment: Director sale was scheduled in advance: Director Robert Mylod Jr. sold 1,000 shares for $206,700 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. He continues to own 15,000 shares, limiting the significance of the transaction as a bearish signal. Booking Director Stock Sale
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term outlook is less robust: Investors remain cautious about soft third-quarter revenue guidance, moderating room-night growth and marketing expenses rising faster than revenue. Competition from Google, geopolitical uncertainty and technically overbought conditions could limit further gains after the recent rally. Why Analysts Are Bullish on Booking

Insider Activity at Booking

In other Booking news, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $1,000,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,200,000. This trade represents a 23.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 69,625 shares of company stock worth $11,652,075. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BKNG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $215.00 price target (up from $195.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Booking from $224.00 to $208.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Booking from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $274.00 target price (up from $264.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $234.69.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $214.42 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $161.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $150.14 and a 52 week high of $231.80. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $179.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $176.36.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its earnings results 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 net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. The firm had revenue of $7.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $55.40 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Booking Profile

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.