Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Position Lessened by Metropolis Capital Ltd

Metropolis Capital Ltd lowered its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 46,339 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 652 shares during the quarter. Booking makes up approximately 8.5% of Metropolis Capital Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Metropolis Capital Ltd owned approximately 0.14% of Booking worth $268,268,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BKNG. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Booking during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Booking during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, First PREMIER Bank boosted its holdings in Booking by 100.0% in the second 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 last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Stock Down 0.9%

BKNG stock opened at $5,350.56 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $5,533.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5,285.05. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $4,060.98 and a 52-week high of $5,839.41. The company has a market capitalization of $173.41 billion, a PE ratio of 37.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.35.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $55.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $50.32 by $5.08. The business had revenue of $6.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. Booking had a net margin of 19.23% and a negative return on equity of 134.19%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $41.90 earnings per share. Booking has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were given a dividend of $9.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.71%.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In related news, Director Larry Quinlan sold 64 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,587.11, for a total value of $357,575.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,089,486.45. This trade represents a 24.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,476.89, for a total value of $5,548,089.57. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 24,620 shares in the company, valued at $134,841,031.80. The trade was a 3.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,195 shares of company stock valued at $23,467,630. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on BKNG shares. Mizuho began coverage on Booking in a research note on Monday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $5,975.00 price target for the company. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $5,900.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,820.00 to $5,850.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Booking from $6,000.00 to $6,500.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $5,807.89.

About Booking

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.