Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Has $21.44 Million Stock Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP raised its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 1,646.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,703 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,491 shares during the quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP’s holdings in Booking were worth $21,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new position in shares of Booking in the second quarter valued at $29,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Booking by 400.0% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 5 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Booking in the first quarter valued at $28,000. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, First PREMIER Bank grew its position in shares of Booking by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 6 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG opened at $5,301.64 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $170.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.25. The business’s 50 day moving average is $5,061.02 and its 200-day moving average is $5,379.40. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $4,096.23 and a 1-year high of $5,839.41.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $99.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $95.56 by $3.94. Booking had a negative return on equity of 134.86% and a net margin of 19.37%.The business had revenue of $9.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $83.39 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be paid a $9.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is 24.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BKNG. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Booking from $6,723.00 to $6,790.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Benchmark boosted their price target on Booking from $6,200.00 to $6,400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. BNP Paribas set a $6,100.00 price objective on Booking in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Mizuho set a $6,000.00 target price on Booking in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price target on Booking from $6,450.00 to $6,630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $6,149.23.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,000.00, for a total transaction of $1,000,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,570,000. This trade represents a 11.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 40 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,000.00, for a total transaction of $200,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 960 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,800,000. This trade represents a 4.00% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 3,388 shares of company stock valued at $17,629,822 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.