Bender Robert & Associates Raises Stock Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Bender Robert & Associates boosted its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,162 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 13 shares during the quarter. Booking makes up about 1.9% of Bender Robert & Associates’ holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Bender Robert & Associates’ holdings in Booking were worth $7,669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 8.8% in the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 15,301 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $47,188,000 after purchasing an additional 1,236 shares during the last quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Booking by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. now owns 4,390 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $13,539,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC grew its position in shares of Booking by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 16,248 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $57,635,000 after buying an additional 470 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $24,841,000. Finally, Advisor Resource Council raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 382.4% during the fourth quarter. Advisor Resource Council now owns 357 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,266,000 after acquiring an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,534.10, for a total transaction of $2,650,575.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 26,971 shares in the company, valued at $95,318,211.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,534.10, for a total value of $2,650,575.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 26,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $95,318,211.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 59 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,700.00, for a total transaction of $218,300.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 289 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,069,300. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,461 shares of company stock worth $18,815,825 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $3,850.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Booking from $3,580.00 to $4,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Booking from $3,900.00 to $3,800.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Seaport Res Ptn reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Booking in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, JMP Securities increased their target price on Booking from $3,600.00 to $3,950.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,723.41.

Booking Price Performance

NASDAQ BKNG traded down $13.77 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $3,430.14. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 156,374 shares, compared to its average volume of 274,057. The company has a market cap of $117.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,586.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3,364.25. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,456.93 and a 12 month high of $3,918.00.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The business services provider reported $32.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $29.72 by $2.28. The firm had revenue of $4.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. Booking had a net margin of 20.08% and a negative return on equity of 751.49%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $24.74 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 175.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a dividend of $8.75 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.02%. Booking’s payout ratio is 29.67%.

About Booking

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.