Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Purchases 3,237 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 32.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 13,264 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,237 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $2,161,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mill Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Booking by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Mill Capital Management LLC now owns 5,721 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $24,087,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Van Diest Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 30.1% during the first quarter. Van Diest Capital LLC now owns 281 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,185,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Garrett Wealth Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 2.5% in the third quarter. Garrett Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,667 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $434,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Adelphi Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 0.7% in the third quarter. Adelphi Trust Co now owns 9,660 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,574,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allen Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of Booking by 11.0% in the 1st quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 697 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,934,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on BKNG shares. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $179.00 target price (down from $190.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Argus upped their price target on shares of Booking from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reduced their price objective on shares of Booking from $245.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $222.35.

Booking Stock Performance

Booking stock opened at $163.49 on Tuesday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $146.28 and a 1 year high of $220.81. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $165.65 and its 200-day moving average is $175.92. The company has a market cap of $121.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.61, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.17.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The business services provider reported $4.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.49 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $9.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.55 billion. Booking had a net margin of 25.52% and a negative return on equity of 89.54%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $99.50 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 11th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Booking news, VP Peter Millones, Jr. sold 50,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.59, for a total value of $10,389,879.50. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 375,025 shares in the company, valued at approximately $77,851,439.75. This trade represents a 11.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Paulo Pisano sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.06, for a total transaction of $244,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 70,400 shares in the company, valued at $11,479,424. The trade was a 2.09% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 77,425 shares of company stock worth $16,004,164. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Booking Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is an online travel company that connects travelers with accommodations and other travel services. Through its digital platforms, customers can search for and book hotels, vacation rentals, flights, rental cars, attractions and other travel experiences.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands, including Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, Rentalcars.com and OpenTable. Its services span accommodation reservations, travel search and comparison, car rentals, and restaurant reservations.

Booking Holdings traces its history to Priceline, which was founded in 1997.