Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Purchases 18,035 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 15.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 137,559 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 18,035 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Booking were worth $22,410,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BKNG. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at $11,646,302,000. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Booking by 2,674.6% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 39,420,711 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,026,348,000 after acquiring an additional 37,999,915 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in Booking by 1,497.3% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 870,520 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,665,168,000 after acquiring an additional 816,022 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in Booking during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,691,186,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,370,455,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. DA Davidson set a $240.00 target price on Booking in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Argus increased their price target on shares of Booking from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $240.00 price objective (up from $215.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price objective on shares of Booking from $220.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, B. Riley Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $274.00 price objective (up from $264.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $233.71.

Booking Stock Performance

BKNG stock opened at $158.38 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $179.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $177.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.53, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.13. Booking Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $150.14 and a fifty-two week high of $220.81.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. Booking had a net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. The company had revenue of $7.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $55.40 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th were issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 11th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 1,500 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.06, for a total transaction of $244,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 70,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,479,424. The trade was a 2.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vanessa Wittman sold 375 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.00, for a total transaction of $79,125.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 16,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,404,063. The trade was a 2.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 84,550 shares of company stock worth $17,426,864. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Booking Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel and restaurant-reservation company that connects consumers with travel providers through digital platforms and mobile applications. Its services include accommodations, flights, rental cars, cruises, vacation packages, restaurant reservations and other travel-related offerings.

The company operates a portfolio of well-known brands, including Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, OpenTable, Rentalcars.com and Kayak-associated travel services.