Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Shares Acquired by NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC increased its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 249.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,142 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,099 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $1,164,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HF Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Booking by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC now owns 23,153 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,772,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC grew its position in Booking by 309.7% during the 3rd quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 381 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs & Co. CA increased its holdings in Booking by 27.6% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs & Co. CA now owns 75,118 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,237,000 after purchasing an additional 16,242 shares in the last quarter. Argus Investors Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in Booking during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,090,000. Finally, Bullock Wealth Management Group increased its holdings in Booking by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bullock Wealth Management Group now owns 3,980 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $656,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on BKNG shares. B. Riley Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $274.00 price objective (up from $264.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 target price on Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Argus increased their target price on Booking from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. TD Cowen upgraded Booking to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and issued a $240.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.95.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In other news, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total value of $4,220,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,618,327.82. This trade represents a 25.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert Mylod, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $1,000,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 16,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,200,000. The trade was a 23.81% 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. In the last three months, insiders sold 83,050 shares of company stock worth $17,182,274. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Booking Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $165.80 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $150.14 and a 1 year high of $220.81. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $183.10 and its 200-day moving average is $177.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.35, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.13.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. The business had revenue of $7.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $55.40 earnings per share. Booking’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 11th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.58%.

Key Headlines Impacting Booking

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Booking launched Vayo, an AI-powered personal travel agent now entering private beta, and plans to invest $100 million in the platform. Management is positioning Vayo as a tool that organizes complete trips, learns user preferences and continues assisting travelers after booking. The initiative could create new customer-engagement and monetization opportunities over time. Booking Holdings Launches Vayo with Planned $100M Investment
• Positive Sentiment: Booking recently advanced even as the broader market declined, suggesting company-specific buying interest. The move may reflect investor enthusiasm for Vayo and confidence in Booking’s travel-market position. Booking Holdings Advances While Market Declines
• Positive Sentiment: Booking has an average analyst price target of $233.95, well above the stock’s recent trading level, indicating substantial potential upside if the company meets expectations. Price targets are estimates, not guarantees. Booking Holdings Stock Has Average Price Target of $233.95
• Neutral Sentiment: BKNG has attracted unusually high attention among Zacks users, but the reports do not identify a new earnings forecast, upgrade or fundamental catalyst. The increased visibility may support trading interest without necessarily changing valuation. Booking Holdings Is Attracting Investor Attention
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports noting approximately $10.1 billion in advance deposits emphasize that much of the money belongs to hotels and other travel providers. This supports Booking’s role as a platform but should not be interpreted as equivalent to revenue or cash available to shareholders. Booking Advance Deposits

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel and restaurant reservation company headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut. Through its digital platforms, the company helps consumers search for, compare and reserve accommodations, flights, rental cars, vacation packages, attractions and restaurant reservations.

Its portfolio includes Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, OpenTable, Rentalcars.com and the travel metasearch brands Momondo and Cheapflights. Booking.com is primarily known for lodging reservations, while Priceline focuses on travel deals, Agoda serves customers across international markets with a strong presence in Asia, KAYAK and its related brands provide travel search and comparison services, and OpenTable operates a restaurant reservation platform.

The company was founded in 1997 as Priceline.com and was later renamed The Priceline Group before adopting the Booking Holdings name in 2018.