Larson Financial Group LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Larson Financial Group LLC lessened its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 16.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 104 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 21 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $413,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 303 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,075,000 after buying an additional 5 shares during the period. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 45.2% during the 4th quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 151 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $536,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. US Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter worth approximately $252,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. raised its position in shares of Booking by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 590 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,093,000 after acquiring an additional 8 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Western Trust Bank purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $220,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Price Performance

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $3,781.88 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $126.77 billion, a PE ratio of 28.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.40. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $3,778.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $3,699.70. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $2,733.04 and a 1-year high of $4,144.32.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $39.22 by $2.68. Booking had a negative return on equity of 200.87% and a net margin of 22.46%. The company had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $37.62 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 177.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a $8.75 dividend. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.25%.

Insider Activity

In other Booking news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total value of $388,761.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,722,379.07. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total transaction of $388,761.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,722,379.07. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,067.65, for a total value of $3,050,737.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 24,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,556,375.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKNG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Booking from $4,300.00 to $3,900.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $3,590.00 price objective for the company. Argus increased their target price on Booking from $4,200.00 to $4,342.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Booking from $4,150.00 to $4,100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Benchmark lowered their price target on Booking from $4,700.00 to $4,600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,062.89.

About Booking

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.