Federated Hermes Inc. Has $4.46 Million Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,257 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Booking were worth $4,459,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Howard Financial Services LTD. increased its holdings in Booking by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 129 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $458,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in Booking by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 764 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,710,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co. grew its holdings in Booking by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 88 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $312,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its holdings in Booking by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 601 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,854,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the period. Finally, Stockman Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Booking by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 170 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $524,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Booking Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $3,521.08 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $3,547.11 and a 200-day moving average of $3,383.62. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,456.93 and a 12-month high of $3,918.00. The firm has a market cap of $119.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.85, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The business services provider reported $32.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $29.72 by $2.28. Booking had a net margin of 20.08% and a negative return on equity of 751.49%. The company had revenue of $4.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $24.74 EPS. Booking’s quarterly revenue was up 18.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 175.86 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.99%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is 29.67%.

Insider Activity at Booking

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 300 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,485.00, for a total value of $1,045,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,233 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,752,005. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Booking news, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 28 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,498.29, for a total value of $97,952.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $815,101.57. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Paulo Pisano sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,485.00, for a total transaction of $1,045,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,752,005. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,461 shares of company stock worth $18,815,825. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKNG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. B. Riley initiated coverage on Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $4,400.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Booking from $3,450.00 to $4,200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Mizuho increased their price target on Booking from $3,580.00 to $4,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Booking from $3,900.00 to $3,800.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Booking currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $3,723.41.

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.