Aubrey Capital Management Ltd Cuts Stock Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Aubrey Capital Management Ltd lessened its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 18.2% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 900 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Booking comprises 1.5% of Aubrey Capital Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Aubrey Capital Management Ltd’s holdings in Booking were worth $3,791,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its stake in Booking by 55.9% in the third quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 931 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,921,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Booking during the first quarter valued at approximately $537,000. BDF Gestion purchased a new position in Booking during the second quarter valued at $6,897,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in Booking in the first quarter worth about $519,000. Finally, Cumberland Partners Ltd lifted its position in Booking by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd now owns 500 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,106,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Argus lowered shares of Booking from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Booking from $4,200.00 to $4,600.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Booking from $4,100.00 to $5,005.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $4,448.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Booking from $3,976.00 to $4,173.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,749.83.

Booking Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of Booking stock opened at $4,987.44 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $4,311.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,966.44. The firm has a market cap of $165.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.38. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $3,079.50 and a 12 month high of $5,069.44.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.75%.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,722,379.07. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.12% 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.