TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. Boosts Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 666.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,002 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 30,436 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc.’s holdings in Booking were worth $6,395,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at $11,646,302,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Booking in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,691,186,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the second quarter valued at $1,370,455,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Booking by 2,525.5% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,101,866 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,087,597,000 after purchasing an additional 5,869,459 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in Booking in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $992,026,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Booking Price Performance

BKNG opened at $193.29 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $194.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $178.60. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $150.14 and a 52 week high of $226.10. The company has a market cap of $145.23 billion, a PE ratio of 21.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.07.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.The company had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $55.40 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is 18.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.48, for a total transaction of $610,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 73,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,935,432. The trade was a 3.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total value of $4,220,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,794 shares in the company, valued at $12,618,327.82. This trade represents a 25.06% 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 81,550 shares of company stock valued at $16,922,744. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Mizuho set a $240.00 target price on Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Truist Financial set a $242.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $236.70.

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.