Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Position Boosted by Trust Asset Management LLC

Trust Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 2,340.9% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 8,958 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,591 shares during the quarter. Trust Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $1,597,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Booking by 34.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 251 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,249,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at about $209,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Booking by 25.0% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $955,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its position in shares of Booking by 50.0% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 87 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $504,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Booking during the second quarter worth approximately $179,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total transaction of $216,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,508 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,169,536. This represents a 6.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total transaction of $10,229,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,572,025.25. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 68,625 shares of company stock valued at $11,445,375. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Booking Stock Up 6.6%

NASDAQ BKNG opened at $207.02 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $160.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.91, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $177.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $176.76. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $150.14 and a twelve month high of $231.80.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Booking had a net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 120.96%. The company had revenue of $7.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $55.40 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on BKNG shares. DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Booking from $240.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $250.00 price target (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective (down from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $236.00 target price (up from $225.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $234.98.

Trending Headlines about Booking

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 results exceeded expectations: Adjusted earnings per share were $2.54 versus the $2.43–$2.45 consensus, while revenue rose 8.1% year over year to $7.35 billion, ahead of the $7.19 billion estimate. Room nights, gross bookings and EBITDA also surpassed expectations. Booking Holdings Q2 results top estimates as travel demand remains resilient
• Positive Sentiment: Travel demand remains resilient: Strong domestic and regional travel supported growth across the platform, helping ease concerns about weaker long-haul international demand and Middle East-related disruption. Investors viewed the performance as evidence that Booking’s business remains durable. Booking Holdings Stock Surges on Better-Than-Expected Results
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised their targets: UBS increased its target to $274 and initiated a Buy rating; Benchmark raised its target to $250 and also rated the stock Buy; Wedbush lifted its target to $247 with an Outperform rating. BTIG reaffirmed Buy with a $250 target. These revisions reinforce the post-earnings bullish sentiment. Analyst target updates
• Positive Sentiment: AI and efficiency initiatives add longer-term potential: Management highlighted early benefits from AI-powered personalization, connected-trip development and higher savings, while Booking’s transaction infrastructure remains difficult for generative AI competitors to replicate. BKNG Q2 Earnings Call Centers on Resilience, AI and Savings
• Neutral Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target from $175 to $220 but maintained a Neutral rating, indicating more limited upside after the rally. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst update
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term risks remain: Booking guided third-quarter revenue to $9.4–$9.5 billion, below the roughly $9.7 billion consensus estimate. Management also cited Middle East-related volatility, while marketing expenses growing faster than revenue could pressure customer-acquisition costs and margins. Booking Holdings: The Buy Thesis Survives Q2

Booking Profile

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.