Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $219.70, but opened at $247.00. Expedia Group shares last traded at $257.4430, with a volume of 1,288,805 shares trading hands.

The online travel company reported $7.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.10 by $0.47. Expedia Group had a return on equity of 56.25% and a net margin of 7.94%.The company had revenue of $4.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Expedia Group has set its Q4 2025 guidance at EPS. FY 2025 guidance at EPS.

Expedia Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 19th. Expedia Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on EXPE. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Expedia Group from $185.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Expedia Group in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $240.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Expedia Group from $253.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Expedia Group from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Expedia Group from $174.00 to $218.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and twenty-three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $237.10.

Insider Transactions at Expedia Group

In related news, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 3,306 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.84, for a total transaction of $663,977.04. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 77,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,479,743. This represents a 4.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Craig A. Jacobson sold 3,000 shares of Expedia Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.78, for a total transaction of $623,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 33,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,035,015.24. This represents a 8.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,816 shares of company stock valued at $2,009,132. 9.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Expedia Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Spire Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Expedia Group by 114.3% in the 2nd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 150 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Expedia Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Expedia Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. GFG Capital LLC purchased a new position in Expedia Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Expedia Group during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. 90.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Expedia Group Stock Up 17.1%

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $218.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $191.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.14, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market cap of $31.84 billion, a PE ratio of 31.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.58.

About Expedia Group

Expedia Group, Inc operates as an online travel company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through B2C, B2B, and trivago segments. Its B2C segment includes Brand Expedia, a full-service online travel brand offers various travel products and services; Hotels.com for lodging accommodations; Vrbo, an online marketplace for the alternative accommodations; Orbitz, Travelocity, Wotif Group, ebookers, CheapTickets, Hotwire.com and CarRentals.com.