HBK Sorce Advisory LLC Invests $843,000 in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

HBK Sorce Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 4,071 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $843,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Barden Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Booking during the 2nd quarter valued at $876,000. Flputnam Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 2nd quarter worth $24,773,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in Booking during the second quarter valued at $4,665,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Booking during the second quarter valued at $1,370,455,000. Finally, Centric Wealth Management bought a new stake in Booking during the second quarter valued at about $340,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on BKNG. Argus upped their price target on Booking from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 price objective (down from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $215.00 price objective on Booking and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Booking and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One 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 stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $235.72.

Booking Stock Performance

BKNG stock opened at $212.06 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $184.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.65. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $150.14 and a fifty-two week high of $231.80. The firm has a market cap of $159.34 billion, a PE ratio of 23.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.07.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $55.40 earnings per share. Booking’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.47 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 16,508 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,169,536. This represents a 6.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total value of $206,700.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 15,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,100,500. The trade was a 6.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 89,625 shares of company stock valued at $15,872,675 over the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Booking Company 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.