SEB Asset Management AB Buys New Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

SEB Asset Management AB purchased a new position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 20,525 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $86,417,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Swiss National Bank grew its stake in shares of Booking by 6.5% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 94,604 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $398,313,000 after buying an additional 5,790 shares in the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd lifted its position in Booking by 21.3% during the 1st quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 2,267 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,545,000 after acquiring an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Spartan Wealth Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Booking in the 1st quarter worth approximately $615,000. Aurora Investment Counsel boosted its holdings in Booking by 23.0% in the 1st quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 647 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,724,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System grew its position in Booking by 28.4% in the first quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 81,489 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $343,095,000 after acquiring an additional 18,038 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Booking

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush initiated coverage on Booking Holdings with an “outperform” rating and a $211 price target, implying meaningful upside from current levels and suggesting Wall Street still sees room for the stock to recover. Wedbush initiates coverage on Booking
• Neutral Sentiment: Erste Group slightly lowered its FY2026 EPS estimate for Booking to $10.39 from $10.42, a small reduction but still close to the consensus estimate of $10.43, so the change was not a major earnings shock.
• Negative Sentiment: Recent articles noted that Booking fell more than the broader market, indicating traders were selling the stock alongside a weaker tape and possibly taking profits after its strong run. Why Booking Holdings fell more than broader market

Booking Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of Booking stock opened at $181.68 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $140.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.07. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $150.14 and a fifty-two week high of $231.80. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $169.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $178.97.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.52 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 117.14% and a net margin of 22.23%.Booking’s quarterly revenue was up 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.99 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.11%.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In related news, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total transaction of $10,229,375.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at $69,572,025.25. This trade represents a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BKNG has been the subject of several analyst reports. HSBC decreased their target price on shares of Booking from $309.84 to $298.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of Booking from $240.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Booking from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Booking from $230.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Booking from $248.00 to $240.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $227.29.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel company that operates a portfolio of consumer brands and technology platforms that facilitate the search for and booking of travel services. The company’s businesses focus on accommodations, transportation and related travel services through consumer-facing websites and apps as well as partner distribution channels. Booking Holdings was originally founded as Priceline in the late 1990s and adopted the Booking Holdings name in 2018; it is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Its core offerings include online reservations for hotels, vacation rentals and other lodging; flight and car rental search and booking; and ancillary services that support travel planning and on-property experiences.