Axa S.A. Has $126.18 Million Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Axa S.A. decreased its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 5.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,852 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,795 shares during the period. Axa S.A.’s holdings in Booking were worth $126,182,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. PARUS FINANCE UK Ltd increased its position in Booking by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. PARUS FINANCE UK Ltd now owns 863 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,061,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 0.5% in the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 624 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,264,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Aspiriant LLC raised its position in Booking by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 65 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Consilio Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Booking by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Consilio Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 178 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $647,000 after buying an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in Booking by 30.0% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 13 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Booking from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $4,350.00 to $4,200.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of Booking from $4,600.00 to $4,200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Booking from $4,275.00 to $4,105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays cut their price target on 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. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price objective on Booking from $3,850.00 to $4,200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4,064.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,556,375.65. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,722,379.07. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 24,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $100,556,375.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Booking Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $4,177.56 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,773.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3,738.53. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,733.04 and a 52-week high of $4,182.79. The company has a market cap of $140.03 billion, a PE ratio of 31.33, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 earnings per share 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%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $37.62 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 176.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. Booking’s payout ratio is currently 26.25%.

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.