Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lowered its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 0.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,208 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 161 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned 0.09% of Booking worth $131,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Booking by 133.3% during the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in Booking in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of BKNG stock traded up $83.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $4,187.70. 167,629 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 252,344. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $3,824.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3,775.58. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,733.04 and a 12-month high of $4,272.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $142.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly 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. Booking had a negative return on equity of 200.87% and a net margin of 22.46%. The firm had revenue of $5.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $37.62 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 176.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th were paid a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 6th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on BKNG shares. Oppenheimer cut their target price on Booking from $4,600.00 to $4,200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Booking from $4,150.00 to $4,100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Booking from $4,025.00 to $3,860.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Booking from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,064.21.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total transaction of $388,761.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,787 shares in the company, valued at $14,722,379.07. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Booking news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,067.65, for a total transaction of $3,050,737.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,556,375.65. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,722,379.07. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.