Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP Boosts Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 11.1% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 10,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the quarter. Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP’s holdings in Booking were worth $39,587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of BKNG. Anomaly Capital Management LP lifted its position in Booking by 134.5% in the 2nd quarter. Anomaly Capital Management LP now owns 21,137 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $83,734,000 after buying an additional 12,124 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Booking by 10.1% during the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 5,694 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $22,557,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP bought a new stake in shares of Booking in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,834,000. DRW Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Booking during the second quarter valued at about $832,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Booking by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $483,000 after acquiring an additional 8 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on BKNG shares. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Booking from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $4,350.00 to $4,200.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Booking from $4,000.00 to $4,200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Booking from $4,025.00 to $3,860.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $3,900.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Booking from $4,500.00 to $4,200.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,064.21.

Booking Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $4,064.01 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $137.88 billion, a PE ratio of 30.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $3,772.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,729.29. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,733.04 and a twelve month high of $4,144.32.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $39.22 by $2.68. The business 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%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $37.62 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 176.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be given a dividend of $8.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.25%.

Booking Company 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.