Mechanics Bank Trust Department Cuts Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department reduced its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 6.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 69 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 5 shares during the period. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Booking were worth $250,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 227 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,580.75, for a total value of $812,830.25. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,233 shares in the company, valued at $15,157,314.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 227 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,580.75, for a total transaction of $812,830.25. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,233 shares in the company, valued at $15,157,314.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,534.10, for a total transaction of $2,650,575.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 26,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $95,318,211.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,021 shares of company stock valued at $3,617,852. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Booking Stock Performance

BKNG opened at $4,014.38 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,726.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3,614.06. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $2,605.00 and a 1 year high of $4,033.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $136.21 billion, a PE ratio of 30.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The business services provider reported $20.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $14.03 by $6.36. Booking had a net margin of 21.81% and a negative return on equity of 288.35%. The business had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.25 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $11.60 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 178.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BKNG. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Booking from $3,800.00 to $4,500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $3,950.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Booking from $3,900.00 to $3,950.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $3,850.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Argus upped their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,200.00 to $4,342.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $3,902.54.

Booking Profile

Booking Holdings Inc, formerly The Priceline Group Inc, is a provider of travel and restaurant online reservation and related services. The Company, through its online travel companies (OTCs), connects consumers wishing to make travel reservations with providers of travel services across the world. It offers consumers an array of accommodation reservations (including hotels, bed and breakfasts, hostels, apartments, vacation rentals and other properties) through its Booking.com, priceline.com and agoda.com brands.