Westpac Banking Corp Sells 47 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Westpac Banking Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 1.7% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,660 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 47 shares during the period. Booking makes up about 1.0% of Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Booking were worth $15,399,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BKNG. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,956,462 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $13,620,154,000 after buying an additional 30,054 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 854,838 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,936,132,000 after purchasing an additional 9,333 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Booking by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 370,327 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,706,063,000 after purchasing an additional 1,699 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 6.6% during the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 296,331 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,365,170,000 after purchasing an additional 18,268 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 9.5% during the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 226,608 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,297,331,000 after purchasing an additional 19,578 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Booking Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $5,048.01 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $4,096.23 and a 12 month high of $5,839.41. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $5,261.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5,415.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $162.72 billion, a PE ratio of 32.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.34.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $99.50 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $9.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $83.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Booking has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th will be paid a $9.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other news, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 40 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,000.00, for a total transaction of $200,000.00. Following the sale, the director owned 960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,800,000. This trade represents a 4.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Larry Quinlan sold 64 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,587.11, for a total transaction of $357,575.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,089,486.45. This trade represents a 24.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 2,424 shares of company stock valued at $12,912,874 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on BKNG. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Booking from $6,723.00 to $6,790.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Mizuho set a $6,000.00 price objective on Booking in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $6,250.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. B. Riley lifted their price target on Booking from $6,700.00 to $6,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Booking from $5,900.00 to $6,100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $6,121.23.

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.