Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Buys 54 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 37.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 197 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in Booking were worth $699,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Diversified Trust Co raised its position in Booking by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 764 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,710,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. lifted its position in shares of Booking by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 129 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $458,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Rockland Trust Co. grew its position in Booking by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 88 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $312,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in Booking by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 69 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $245,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 164 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $582,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on BKNG. Edward Jones reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Booking in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Booking from $3,435.00 to $3,494.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Susquehanna increased their target price on Booking from $3,600.00 to $4,100.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Booking from $3,800.00 to $4,500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $3,844.48.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $3,605.41 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $122.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.04, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.40. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,456.93 and a 52-week high of $3,918.00. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,528.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3,418.38.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The business services provider reported $20.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $14.03 by $6.36. Booking had a net margin of 21.81% and a negative return on equity of 288.35%. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $11.60 EPS. Booking’s revenue was up 16.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 176.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $8.75 per share. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.25%.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In related news, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 22 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,583.07, for a total value of $78,827.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $756,027.77. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 300 shares of the firm’s 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 $14,752,005. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 22 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,583.07, for a total transaction of $78,827.54. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $756,027.77. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,424 shares of company stock worth $18,673,145 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

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.