Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Sets New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) shares hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday. The company traded as low as $149.87 and last traded at $151.0550, with a volume of 762,831 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $153.14.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on BKNG. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Monday. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $211.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a “reduce” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective (down from $220.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. DA Davidson set a $240.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Booking from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $233.71.

Booking Trading Down 0.7%

The company has a market cap of $114.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.13. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $177.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $178.93.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.19 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $55.40 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th were given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 11th. Booking’s payout ratio is presently 18.58%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Peter Millones, Jr. sold 50,050 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.59, for a total transaction of $10,389,879.50. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 375,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $77,851,439.75. This represents a 11.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total value of $4,220,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 59,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,618,327.82. The trade was a 25.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 83,425 shares of company stock worth $17,210,864. 0.17% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Booking during the second quarter worth $11,646,302,000. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Booking by 2,674.6% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 39,420,711 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,026,348,000 after purchasing an additional 37,999,915 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in Booking during the 2nd quarter worth $1,691,186,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Booking during the 2nd quarter worth $1,370,455,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Booking by 2,525.5% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,101,866 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,087,597,000 after buying an additional 5,869,459 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel and restaurant-reservation company that connects consumers with travel providers through digital platforms and mobile applications. Its services include accommodations, flights, rental cars, cruises, vacation packages, restaurant reservations and other travel-related offerings.

The company operates a portfolio of well-known brands, including Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, OpenTable, Rentalcars.com and Kayak-associated travel services.