Diversify Wealth Management LLC Acquires 6,388 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 14,195.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,433 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,388 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $27,085,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Booking during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new position in shares of Booking during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Daytona Street Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC bought a new stake in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Camelot Portfolios LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG traded up $2.87 on Friday, hitting $178.39. The company had a trading volume of 3,974,630 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,066,356. The stock has a market cap of $138.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $168.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $180.25. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $150.14 and a 1-year high of $231.80.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.52 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 117.14% and a net margin of 22.23%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.99 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on BKNG. DA Davidson lowered their target price on shares of Booking from $240.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Booking from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 29th. Piper Sandler set a $195.00 target price on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $215.00 target price (down from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Booking from $226.00 to $223.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Booking presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $227.26.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Booking news, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total value of $10,229,375.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at $69,572,025.25. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director directly owned 16,050 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,081,600. This trade represents a 6.55% 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 80,351 shares of company stock worth $13,545,706 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.