Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC Decreases Stake in Expedia Group, Inc. $EXPE

Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) by 16.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,867 shares of the online travel company’s stock after selling 5,199 shares during the quarter. Expedia Group comprises approximately 0.8% of Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Expedia Group were worth $5,536,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Spire Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Expedia Group by 114.3% in the second quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 150 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. GFG Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Expedia Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Expedia Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH purchased a new position in Expedia Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. acquired a new stake in Expedia Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Madhumita Moina Banerjee sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.00, for a total transaction of $258,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,916 shares in the company, valued at $752,328. The trade was a 25.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Lance A. Soliday sold 849 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $248.08, for a total value of $210,619.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 11,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,893,108.96. This trade represents a 6.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,849 shares of company stock worth $1,283,270. 9.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on EXPE. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of Expedia Group from $220.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Expedia Group from $220.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Expedia Group from $270.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. BTIG Research raised their target price on Expedia Group from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Expedia Group from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and twenty-two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Expedia Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $289.13.

Expedia Group Price Performance

Expedia Group stock opened at $271.14 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.43. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $275.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $233.43. 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $130.01 and a 1 year high of $303.80.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The online travel company reported $7.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.10 by $0.47. Expedia Group had a net margin of 9.66% and a return on equity of 64.15%. The business had revenue of $4.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 19th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 19th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Expedia Group’s payout ratio is currently 15.31%.

About Expedia Group

Expedia Group (NASDAQ: EXPE) is a global travel technology company that operates an online marketplace connecting consumers, travel suppliers and third‑party partners. The company’s platform enables search, comparison and booking of travel products and services, including hotels, airline tickets, vacation rentals, car rentals, cruises and packaged travel. Its portfolio comprises consumer-facing travel brands as well as corporate travel solutions and technology services that serve both leisure and business travelers.

Key offerings include consumer booking platforms and mobile apps that aggregate inventory from hotels, vacation rental managers, airlines and car rental companies, alongside ancillary travel services such as trip insurance and activities.