Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Shares Bought by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 187,019 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,504 shares during the quarter. Booking comprises about 0.9% of Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Booking were worth $1,082,698,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of BKNG. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Booking by 1.2% in the first quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 167 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $809,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. WNY Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. WNY Asset Management LLC now owns 56 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. Gries Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Gries Financial LLC now owns 125 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $576,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 403 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,854,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Booking by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 238 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,070,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of BKNG opened at $4,940.00 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $5,311.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5,401.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $159.24 billion, a PE ratio of 32.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.34. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $4,096.23 and a 12-month high of $5,839.41.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $99.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $95.56 by $3.94. Booking had a net margin of 19.37% and a negative return on equity of 134.86%. The company had revenue of $9.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $83.39 EPS. Booking’s revenue was up 12.7% on a year-over-year basis. Booking has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at EPS. Analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be paid a $9.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on BKNG shares. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on Booking from $5,590.00 to $5,550.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Booking from $5,820.00 to $5,850.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Booking from $5,500.00 to $6,250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on Booking from $6,450.00 to $6,630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $6,121.23.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,516.92, for a total transaction of $5,588,639.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 23,607 shares in the company, valued at approximately $130,237,930.44. The trade was a 4.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Larry Quinlan sold 64 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Monday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,511.80, for a total transaction of $352,755.20. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 131 shares in the company, valued at approximately $722,045.80. This represents a 32.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,197 shares of company stock worth $17,260,963. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.