Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 849,400 shares, an increase of 14.5% from the May 31st total of 741,900 shares. Approximately 2.5% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 224,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.8 days.

Booking Trading Up 0.2 %

BKNG stock opened at $3,968.50 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $3,759.73 and a 200-day moving average of $3,626.59. Booking has a 12 month low of $2,624.50 and a 12 month high of $4,040.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $134.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.38.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The business services provider reported $20.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $14.03 by $6.36. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.25 billion. Booking had a net margin of 21.81% and a negative return on equity of 288.35%. Booking’s quarterly revenue was up 16.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $11.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Booking will post 178.54 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a $8.75 dividend. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on BKNG. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Booking from $3,900.00 to $3,950.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Booking from $3,800.00 to $4,500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. B. Riley began coverage on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $4,400.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Booking from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,902.54.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Booking news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 227 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,580.75, for a total transaction of $812,830.25. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,233 shares in the company, valued at $15,157,314.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 26,971 shares in the company, valued at $95,318,211.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Paulo Pisano sold 227 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,580.75, for a total transaction of $812,830.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 4,233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,157,314.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,021 shares of company stock worth $3,617,852. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Booking

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Howard Financial Services LTD. raised its stake in Booking by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 129 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $458,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 764 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,710,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Rockland Trust Co. grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 88 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $312,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 69 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $245,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bristlecone Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 0.3% in the first quarter. Bristlecone Advisors LLC now owns 894 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,243,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.