Wilkinson Global Asset Management LLC Lowers Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Wilkinson Global Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 15.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 79 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 14 shares during the quarter. Wilkinson Global Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC grew its position in shares of Booking by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 303 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,075,000 after acquiring an additional 5 shares during the period. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 45.2% in the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 151 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $536,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Booking by 28.2% during the 4th quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 150 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $532,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the period. Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,032,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,107,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of BKNG traded down $41.68 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $3,731.35. 283,139 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 257,314. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $3,773.69 and its 200-day moving average is $3,699.80. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2,733.04 and a fifty-two week high of $4,144.32. The company has a market cap of $126.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $39.22 by $2.68. The company had revenue of $5.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. Booking had a net margin of 22.46% and a negative return on equity of 200.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $37.62 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 177.09 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a dividend of $8.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.94%. Booking’s payout ratio is 26.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,067.65, for a total value of $3,050,737.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,556,375.65. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total value of $388,761.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,722,379.07. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,067.65, for a total value of $3,050,737.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 24,721 shares in the company, valued at $100,556,375.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKNG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,000.00 to $4,200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Erste Group Bank upgraded Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. Argus increased their target price on Booking from $4,200.00 to $4,342.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Benchmark reduced their price objective on Booking from $4,700.00 to $4,600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Booking from $4,600.00 to $4,200.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Booking presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,064.21.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc, formerly The Priceline Group Inc, is a provider of travel and restaurant online reservation and related services. The Company, through its online travel companies (OTCs), connects consumers wishing to make travel reservations with providers of travel services across the world. It offers consumers an array of accommodation reservations (including hotels, bed and breakfasts, hostels, apartments, vacation rentals and other properties) through its Booking.com, priceline.com and agoda.com brands.