Franklin Resources Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)

Franklin Resources Inc. cut its stake in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) by 63.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 81,454 shares of the online travel company’s stock after selling 141,640 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of Expedia Group worth $15,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. SRH Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Expedia Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Sava Infond d.o.o. purchased a new position in shares of Expedia Group during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Expedia Group by 676.2% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 163 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Expedia Group in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Expedia Group by 75.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 272 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. 90.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on EXPE. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Expedia Group in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Expedia Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Expedia Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on Expedia Group from $235.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Expedia Group from $166.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $191.43.

Expedia Group Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of EXPE stock opened at $139.82 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The business’s 50 day moving average is $180.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $175.26. Expedia Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $107.25 and a twelve month high of $207.73.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The online travel company reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by ($0.22). Expedia Group had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 52.41%. Equities analysts forecast that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 EPS for the current year.

Expedia Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is a boost from Expedia Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. Expedia Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Expedia Group

In related news, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.79, for a total value of $1,697,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 158,505 shares in the company, valued at $26,912,563.95. This trade represents a 5.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.70, for a total transaction of $1,028,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 74,502 shares in the company, valued at $15,325,061.40. The trade was a 6.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Expedia Group

Expedia Group, Inc operates as an online travel company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through B2C, B2B, and trivago segments. Its B2C segment includes Brand Expedia, a full-service online travel brand offers various travel products and services; Hotels.com for lodging accommodations; Vrbo, an online marketplace for the alternative accommodations; Orbitz, Travelocity, Wotif Group, ebookers, CheapTickets, Hotwire.com and CarRentals.com.