National Pension Service Boosts Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

National Pension Service grew its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 13.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 82,130 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,803 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.25% of Booking worth $345,941,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Booking during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in Booking by 133.3% during the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in Booking during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Booking in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total value of $388,761.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,722,379.07. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Booking Stock Performance

Booking stock opened at $4,749.11 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $4,136.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3,886.98. The firm has a market cap of $157.20 billion, a PE ratio of 32.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.38. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,756.39 and a twelve month high of $4,856.60.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $39.22 by $2.68. Booking had a negative return on equity of 166.06% and a net margin of 21.85%. The firm had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $37.62 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 177.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Booking’s payout ratio is 23.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on BKNG shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Booking from $3,900.00 to $5,250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays boosted their price objective on Booking from $4,500.00 to $5,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Argus lowered shares of Booking from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Booking from $3,976.00 to $4,173.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on Booking from $4,100.00 to $5,005.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,680.18.

Booking 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.