Boston Common Asset Management LLC Has $7.70 Million Stock Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Boston Common Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 1,723.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,173 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 40,805 shares during the quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $7,695,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $361,463,000. Rit Capital Partners PLC acquired a new stake in Booking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,396,000. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Booking by 1,663.9% during the 2nd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 28,698 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,115,000 after purchasing an additional 27,071 shares during the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new stake in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $210,352,000. Finally, Cardano Risk Management B.V. boosted its stake in Booking by 862.0% in the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 218,080 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,167,890,000 after purchasing an additional 195,411 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total transaction of $216,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 16,508 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,169,536. This trade represents a 6.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $1,000,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,200,000. This trade represents a 23.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 89,625 shares of company stock valued at $15,872,675 over the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Booking Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $213.34 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $160.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.61, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $150.14 and a fifty-two week high of $231.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $183.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $177.00.

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

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Booking’s payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on BKNG shares. Mizuho set a $240.00 price objective on Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on shares of Booking from $175.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. HSBC decreased their price target on shares of Booking from $309.84 to $298.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Booking from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Evercore set a $245.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.