Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) Reaches New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday after Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on the stock from $270.00 to $285.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a hold rating on the stock. Expedia Group traded as high as $282.96 and last traded at $279.8850, with a volume of 391687 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $274.07.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on EXPE. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Expedia Group from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on Expedia Group from $220.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Truist Financial set a $210.00 price objective on shares of Expedia Group in a research report on Monday, October 27th. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on shares of Expedia Group in a research note on Monday, November 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Expedia Group in a research note on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and twenty-five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $265.78.

Insider Activity at Expedia Group

In other Expedia Group news, Director Madhumita Moina Banerjee sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $258.00, for a total value of $258,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $752,328. This trade represents a 25.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Craig A. Jacobson sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $271.55, for a total transaction of $814,650.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 30,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,379,489.90. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,849 shares of company stock valued at $1,283,270. 9.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Expedia Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EXPE. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Expedia Group by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 9,814 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $2,098,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in Expedia Group by 0.9% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 5,658 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $1,209,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Expedia Group by 0.8% in the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 6,201 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $1,325,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Expedia Group by 4.3% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,346 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Expedia Group by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 745 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

Expedia Group Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $237.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $207.62. The company has a market cap of $34.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The online travel company reported $7.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.10 by $0.47. The business had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.28 billion. Expedia Group had a net margin of 9.66% and a return on equity of 64.15%. The company’s revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.13 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 19th. Expedia Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.31%.

Expedia Group Company Profile

Expedia Group, Inc operates as an online travel company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through B2C, B2B, and trivago segments. Its B2C segment includes Brand Expedia, a full-service online travel brand offers various travel products and services; Hotels.com for lodging accommodations; Vrbo, an online marketplace for the alternative accommodations; Orbitz, Travelocity, Wotif Group, ebookers, CheapTickets, Hotwire.com and CarRentals.com.