Metropolis Capital Ltd Has $350,000 Position in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Metropolis Capital Ltd grew its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 82.0% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 83,221 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 37,507 shares during the period. Booking comprises about 0.0% of Metropolis Capital Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Metropolis Capital Ltd’s holdings in Booking were worth $350,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,997,949 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $16,055,006,000 after purchasing an additional 23,159 shares during the period. J. Stern & Co. LLP grew its holdings in Booking by 191,965.8% during the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 2,832,970 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $15,171,489,000 after purchasing an additional 2,831,495 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in Booking by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,435,116 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,685,520,000 after buying an additional 6,976 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Booking by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 966,121 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,173,899,000 after buying an additional 128,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dodge & Cox increased its position in Booking by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 732,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,920,535,000 after buying an additional 56,999 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total transaction of $216,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 16,050 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,081,600. This trade represents a 6.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 16,726 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.36, for a total value of $3,100,331.36. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 298,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $55,269,532.64. This represents a 5.31% 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. Insiders have sold a total of 80,351 shares of company stock valued at $13,545,706 in the last ninety days. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on BKNG shares. Barclays set a $210.00 price objective on Booking and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Argus boosted their target price on Booking from $188.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on Booking from $259.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on Booking from $210.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $227.14.

Trending Headlines about Booking

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BTIG reportedly initiated or reiterated a Buy rating on Booking Holdings, adding to the generally optimistic analyst backdrop. Booking Holdings (BKNG) Gets a Buy from BTIG
• Positive Sentiment: Some investors view the recent selloff as a buying opportunity, arguing that Booking remains a high-quality travel platform with strong cash flow, margins, and fair-to-attractive valuation. Booking Holdings: Selloff May Be More Of An Opportunity Than Warning
• Positive Sentiment: Another bullish note said Booking has a strong earnings track record, leadership in online travel, and potential upside from temporary concerns being overdone. Booking Holdings: Strong Track Record At A Discount
• Positive Sentiment: Booking shares rallied after crude oil prices fell below $70, a move seen as potentially lowering travel costs and boosting booking demand. Booking (BKNG) Shares Skyrocket, What You Need To Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles focused on Wall Street’s generally bullish consensus on Booking, with the average brokerage recommendation at Buy, though the pieces also questioned how useful analyst ratings are as a signal. Is Booking Holdings (BKNG) a Buy as Wall Street Analysts Look Optimistic?
• Neutral Sentiment: Bernstein was reported to have a Hold rating on BKNG, which may temper some of the more upbeat sentiment around the stock. Booking Holdings (BKNG) Receives a Hold from Bernstein
• Negative Sentiment: Booking also saw a recent one-day decline that outpaced the broader market, reflecting some ongoing volatility after the stock’s earlier run-up. Here’s Why Booking Holdings (BKNG) Fell More Than Broader Market

Booking Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $181.46 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $150.14 and a 12-month high of $233.58. The company has a market capitalization of $140.61 billion, a PE ratio of 23.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.08. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $169.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.47.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.52 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 117.14% and a net margin of 22.23%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.44 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Booking’s payout ratio is 22.11%.

Booking Profile

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.