Ieq Capital LLC Has $12.41 Million Stock Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Ieq Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 7.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,132 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the quarter. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $12,407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BKNG. Hilltop Holdings Inc. raised its position in shares of Booking by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 358 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,270,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. PARUS FINANCE UK Ltd lifted its position in shares of Booking by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. PARUS FINANCE UK Ltd now owns 863 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,061,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 624 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,264,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Aspiriant LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 4.8% during the first quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 65 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. Finally, Consilio Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Booking by 1.7% in the first quarter. Consilio Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 178 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $647,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

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

Booking Stock Down 0.3 %

Booking stock opened at $4,017.51 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $3,771.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3,720.94. The stock has a market cap of $134.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.40. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,733.04 and a 12-month high of $4,144.32.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $39.22 by $2.68. The company had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. Booking had a net margin of 22.46% and a negative return on equity of 200.87%. Booking’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $37.62 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 176.92 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be given a dividend of $8.75 per share. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. Booking’s payout ratio is 26.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on BKNG. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $3,497.00 to $3,976.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Booking from $4,300.00 to $3,900.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Booking in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $3,590.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Booking from $4,500.00 to $4,200.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Booking from $4,000.00 to $4,200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,064.21.

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.