Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Position Decreased by Pinnacle Associates Ltd.

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. reduced its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 36.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,191 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 8,052 shares during the quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Booking were worth $2,312,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Booking in the 2nd quarter worth $11,646,302,000. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,674.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 39,420,711 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,026,348,000 after acquiring an additional 37,999,915 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 1,497.3% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 870,520 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,665,168,000 after acquiring an additional 816,022 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new stake in shares of Booking during the 2nd quarter worth $1,691,186,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Booking during the 2nd quarter worth $1,370,455,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Booking Stock Down 3.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $155.83 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $117.09 billion, a PE ratio of 16.76, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.13. The company’s fifty day moving average is $176.85 and its 200 day moving average is $177.30. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $150.14 and a 52 week high of $220.81.

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

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.58%.

Insider Activity at Booking

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.06, for a total transaction of $244,590.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 70,400 shares in the company, valued at $11,479,424. This trade represents a 2.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter Millones, Jr. sold 50,050 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.59, for a total value of $10,389,879.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 375,025 shares in the company, valued at $77,851,439.75. This trade represents a 11.77% 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. Insiders sold a total of 84,550 shares of company stock worth $17,426,864 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKNG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $215.00 target price (up from $195.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Rosenblatt Securities started coverage on Booking in a research note on Tuesday, September 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $245.00 price target for the company. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $270.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $216.00 price objective on Booking and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Booking presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.71.

Booking 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.