HF Advisory Group LLC Raises Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

HF Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 16.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 596 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Booking makes up approximately 1.4% of HF Advisory Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. HF Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $2,114,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Howard Financial Services LTD. boosted its position in Booking by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 129 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $458,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Booking by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 764 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,710,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Rockland Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Booking by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 88 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $312,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its position in shares of Booking by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 601 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,854,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stockman Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Booking by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 170 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $524,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG traded up $34.78 on Thursday, hitting $3,478.69. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 27,813 shares, compared to its average volume of 272,264. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $2,456.93 and a 12-month high of $3,918.00. The company has a market capitalization of $118.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.40. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $3,586.29 and a 200-day moving average of $3,364.25.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The business services provider reported $32.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $29.72 by $2.28. Booking had a net margin of 20.08% and a negative return on equity of 751.49%. The company had revenue of $4.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $24.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 175.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $8.75 dividend. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BKNG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. JMP Securities lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $3,600.00 to $3,950.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Booking from $3,900.00 to $3,800.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Booking from $3,548.00 to $3,435.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Edward Jones restated a “hold” rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Booking currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,723.41.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 4,302 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,422.75, for a total transaction of $14,724,670.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 33,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $114,826,417. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 4,302 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,422.75, for a total transaction of $14,724,670.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 33,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $114,826,417. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 26,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $95,318,211.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,461 shares of company stock valued at $18,815,825 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

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.