IFG Advisory LLC Acquires 362 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

IFG Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 30.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,567 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 362 shares during the period. IFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $5,558,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter worth $1,068,137,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in Booking by 3,557.5% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 142,166 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $333,870,000 after purchasing an additional 138,279 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 61.6% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 295,891 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $596,303,000 after acquiring an additional 112,831 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,479.0% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 116,777 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $414,234,000 after acquiring an additional 112,249 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at about $222,919,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $3,673.50 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $3,580.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3,314.29. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,456.93 and a 1-year high of $3,918.00. The firm has a market cap of $125.52 billion, a PE ratio of 31.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The business services provider reported $32.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $29.72 by $2.28. Booking had a net margin of 20.08% and a negative return on equity of 751.49%. The business had revenue of $4.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $24.74 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 175.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th will be paid a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on BKNG. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Booking from $3,600.00 to $4,100.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Seaport Res Ptn restated a “buy” rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Booking from $3,855.00 to $4,285.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 28th. Finally, JMP Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Booking from $3,600.00 to $3,950.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,697.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Booking news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 4,302 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,422.75, for a total transaction of $14,724,670.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 33,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $114,826,417. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 300 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,485.00, for a total value of $1,045,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,752,005. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 4,302 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,422.75, for a total transaction of $14,724,670.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 33,548 shares in the company, valued at $114,826,417. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,467 shares of company stock valued at $22,299,114. 0.15% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Booking Company 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.