Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Buys 2,798 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 2,391.5% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,915 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,798 shares during the quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in Booking were worth $520,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Booking by 2,497.3% during the 2nd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,922 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 1,848 shares during the last quarter. Aspiriant LLC lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 2,448.1% in the second quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 1,273 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 2,571.4% during the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 187 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Poehling Capital Management INC. raised its holdings in Booking by 2,467.8% in the 2nd quarter. Poehling Capital Management INC. now owns 7,344 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,309,000 after acquiring an additional 7,058 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Booking by 1,539.1% in the 2nd quarter. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,131 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $202,000 after acquiring an additional 1,062 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $212.26 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $159.49 billion, a PE ratio of 23.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $182.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $176.92. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $150.14 and a twelve month high of $231.80.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. Booking had a net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. The business had revenue of $7.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $55.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.58%.

Insider Activity at Booking

In related news, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,000,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 16,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,200,000. The trade was a 23.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total value of $216,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 16,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,169,536. The trade was a 6.38% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 69,625 shares of company stock worth $11,652,075. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BKNG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 target price (down from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $220.00 price objective on Booking and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Mizuho set a $240.00 price objective on Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Benchmark boosted their target price on Booking from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Barclays set a $210.00 target price on shares of Booking and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $235.72.

About Booking

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel company that operates a portfolio of consumer brands and technology platforms that facilitate the search for and booking of travel services. The company’s businesses focus on accommodations, transportation and related travel services through consumer-facing websites and apps as well as partner distribution channels. Booking Holdings was originally founded as Priceline in the late 1990s and adopted the Booking Holdings name in 2018; it is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Its core offerings include online reservations for hotels, vacation rentals and other lodging; flight and car rental search and booking; and ancillary services that support travel planning and on-property experiences.