Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC Buys New Shares in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 18,002 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,209,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Greenland Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Booking in the second quarter worth about $379,000. Alta Advisers Ltd bought a new position in shares of Booking during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $575,000. Daiichi Life Insurance Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Booking during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $7,144,000. Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the second quarter valued at $16,768,000. Finally, Commerce Bank purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the second quarter valued at $65,266,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total transaction of $10,229,375.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,572,025.25. This represents a 12.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total transaction of $216,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,508 shares in the company, valued at $3,169,536. This trade represents a 6.38% 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 140,050 shares of company stock valued at $26,341,680. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Booking Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of BKNG opened at $209.62 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $157.50 billion, a PE ratio of 23.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a fifty day moving average of $188.60 and a 200 day moving average of $177.00. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $150.14 and a 52-week high of $231.80.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted 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 net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. The business had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $55.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Booking’s payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on BKNG shares. Gordon Haskett upped their price target on shares of Booking from $217.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. HSBC dropped their price objective on shares of Booking from $309.84 to $298.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. DA Davidson set a $240.00 target price on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $234.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $235.72.

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.