Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC Buys 7,067 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC increased its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 25.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,367 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,067 shares during the quarter. Booking accounts for 1.1% of Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC owned 0.11% of Booking worth $184,047,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in Booking during the third quarter worth $26,000. Daytona Street Capital LLC bought a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC bought a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Camelot Portfolios LLC bought a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Booking during the third quarter worth $27,000. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 16,726 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.36, for a total transaction of $3,100,331.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 298,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $55,269,532.64. This represents a 5.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total value of $10,229,375.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at $69,572,025.25. This represents a 12.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 80,351 shares of company stock valued at $13,545,706 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Booking Trading Down 2.3%

BKNG stock opened at $171.63 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $169.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $183.77. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $150.14 and a 1-year high of $233.58. The stock has a market cap of $132.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.08.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.06. Booking had a negative return on equity of 117.14% and a net margin of 22.23%.The business had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on BKNG shares. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Booking from $234.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. B. Riley Financial decreased their price target on Booking from $272.00 to $264.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 27th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $175.00 price target (down from $180.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Booking from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $215.00 price objective on Booking and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $227.14.

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.