Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Insider Paulo Pisano Sells 1,500 Shares

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) insider Paulo Pisano sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.02, for a total transaction of $259,530.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 71,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,440,138. The trade was a 2.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Paulo Pisano also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, August 31st, Paulo Pisano sold 3,000 shares of Booking stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.48, for a total transaction of $610,440.00.

Booking Stock Up 0.0%

Booking stock traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $171.40. The stock had a trading volume of 5,859,165 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,154,830. The stock has a market capitalization of $128.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $150.14 and a 12-month high of $225.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $193.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $179.02.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.11. Booking had a net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. The firm had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $55.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is 18.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Booking from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $188.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Benchmark lifted their price objective on Booking from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Booking currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.98.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Booking

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Reynders McVeigh Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Booking by 2,935.6% in the second quarter. Reynders McVeigh Capital Management LLC now owns 6,557 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,169,000 after buying an additional 6,341 shares in the last quarter. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. bought a new stake in Booking in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $213,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Booking by 3,217.0% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 759,855 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $135,437,000 after acquiring an additional 736,947 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 3,879.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 52,410 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,342,000 after acquiring an additional 51,093 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 1,951.2% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 223,168 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $43,030,000 after acquiring an additional 212,288 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Booking

Booking Holdings Inc is a global provider of online travel and related services. The company connects consumers with accommodations, flights, rental cars, restaurants and travel experiences through a portfolio of digital brands and websites.

Its principal brands include Booking.com, which offers lodging, transportation and travel experiences; Priceline, which provides online booking services for hotels, flights, rental cars and vacation packages; Agoda, which focuses primarily on travel bookings in Asia and other international markets; KAYAK, a travel metasearch engine; OpenTable, a restaurant reservation and management platform; and Rentalcars.com, a global car rental service.

Booking Holdings serves customers, travel providers and restaurants across numerous countries and regions, with a particularly extensive international presence.