Key Points
- Director Robert Mylod Jr. sold 1,000 Booking shares for $206,700 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, reducing his holdings by 6.25% to 15,000 shares.
- Booking exceeded quarterly expectations: earnings came in at $2.54 per share versus $2.43 expected, while revenue rose 8.1% year over year to $7.35 billion.
- The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, and analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $234.69 price target.
Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) Director Robert Mylod, Jr. sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.70, for a total value of $206,700.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,100,500. This represents a 6.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.
Booking Stock Performance
BKNG stock opened at $207.39 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $178.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.73. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $150.14 and a fifty-two week high of $231.80. The firm has a market cap of $155.83 billion, a PE ratio of 22.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.07.
Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.19 billion. Booking had a net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. Booking's quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $55.40 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.28 EPS for the current year.
Booking Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Booking's payout ratio is 18.58%.
Institutional Trading of Booking
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Booking in the second quarter worth about $472,723,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Booking during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,577,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Booking during the second quarter valued at approximately $6,471,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the second quarter worth approximately $86,000. Finally, AMG National Trust Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the second quarter worth approximately $224,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Key Stories Impacting Booking
Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q2 earnings and revenue beat expectations: Booking reported adjusted earnings of $2.54 per share versus the $2.43 consensus, while revenue rose 8.1% year over year to $7.35 billion, exceeding estimates of $7.19 billion. Growth in room nights, gross bookings and EBITDA pointed to continued travel demand. Booking Holdings Q2 results top estimates as travel demand remains resilient
- Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised targets and maintained bullish ratings: UBS lifted its target to $274 and kept a Buy rating, while Wedbush raised its target to $247 with an Outperform rating. Benchmark increased its target to $250, and BTIG reaffirmed its Buy rating with a $250 target. Booking Given New Price Target at UBS Group
- Positive Sentiment: Operational initiatives remain supportive: Management highlighted early benefits from artificial-intelligence personalization, higher savings and growth in its connected-trip offerings, which could support efficiency and longer-term expansion. BKNG Q2 Earnings Call Centers on Resilience, AI and Savings
- Neutral Sentiment: Dividend declared: Booking declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, payable September 30 to shareholders of record September 11. The modest 0.8% yield is supportive of shareholder returns but unlikely to materially affect valuation.
- Neutral Sentiment: Director stock sale: Director Robert J. Mylod Jr. sold 1,000 shares worth $206,700 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Because the sale was scheduled in advance and leaves him with 15,000 shares, it is not necessarily a bearish signal. SEC Form 4 filing
- Negative Sentiment: Near-term concerns temper the optimism: Third-quarter revenue guidance was viewed as soft, room-night growth is slowing, and marketing expenses are rising faster than revenue. Geopolitical volatility and competition from Google also remain risks, while some commentary warned that the recent rally has left the stock technically overbought. Why Analysts Are Bullish on a Stock That's Down 20%
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
BKNG has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $215.00 price target on Booking and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Argus set a $210.00 price objective on Booking and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $220.00 price objective on Booking and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $250.00 target price (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating and set a $230.00 target price (down from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $234.69.
Read Our Latest Research Report on Booking
About Booking
(
Get Free Report)
Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel company that operates a portfolio of consumer brands and technology platforms that facilitate the search for and booking of travel services. The company's businesses focus on accommodations, transportation and related travel services through consumer-facing websites and apps as well as partner distribution channels. Booking Holdings was originally founded as Priceline in the late 1990s and adopted the Booking Holdings name in 2018; it is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.
Its core offerings include online reservations for hotels, vacation rentals and other lodging; flight and car rental search and booking; and ancillary services that support travel planning and on-property experiences.
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