Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Position Trimmed by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp lowered its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 11.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 212,870 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 28,689 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Booking were worth $34,679,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Booking by 3,475.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 143 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in Booking by 3,550.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 146 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN raised its position in Booking by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 150 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc raised its position in Booking by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. Roble Belko & Company Inc now owns 150 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in Booking during the third quarter worth about $29,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert Mylod, Jr. sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $200,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,800,000. This represents a 6.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter Millones, Jr. sold 50,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the vice president directly owned 375,025 shares in the company, valued at approximately $77,851,439.75. The trade was 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. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 57,425 shares of company stock valued at $11,783,564. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

More Booking News

Investors following BKNG have been watching these news items:

• Positive Sentiment: A comparison with Target highlighted Booking’s online travel market position, high net margins and double-digit revenue growth—supportive fundamentals for investors considering the stock’s longer-term prospects. Booking Holdings vs. Target article
• Neutral Sentiment: Trefis published an update on how Booking’s investment story has changed, but the available article details do not specify its conclusions or a clear stock catalyst. How Has Booking Holdings’ Story Changed?
• Negative Sentiment: OpenAI’s agreed acquisition of travel AI specialist Odessia raises the risk that AI trip-planning tools could become gatekeepers between travelers and booking sites, potentially challenging Booking’s role in travel search and customer acquisition. Could Booking Holdings Lose Travel Search Ground To New AI Gatekeepers?

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on BKNG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Booking from $220.00 to $205.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, November 4th. Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 price objective on Booking in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed a “positive” rating and set a $179.00 price objective (down from $190.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on Booking from $232.00 to $219.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $222.35.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of BKNG opened at $161.20 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $163.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $175.25. The company has a market capitalization of $119.88 billion, a PE ratio of 15.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.17. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $146.28 and a fifty-two week high of $220.81.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The business services provider reported $4.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.49 by $0.17. Booking had a negative return on equity of 89.54% and a net margin of 25.52%. The company had revenue of $9.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $99.50 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 11th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.12%.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc. is an online travel company that connects travelers with accommodations and other travel services. Through its digital platforms, customers can search for and book hotels, vacation rentals, flights, rental cars, attractions and other travel experiences. The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands, including Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, Rentalcars.com and OpenTable. Its services span accommodation reservations, travel search and comparison, car rentals, and restaurant reservations.