International Assets Investment Management LLC Takes $5.32 Billion Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 126,364 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,322,600,000. Booking accounts for 0.7% of International Assets Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. International Assets Investment Management LLC owned about 0.38% of Booking at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board raised its stake in Booking by 20.5% in the first quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 2,348 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,518,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Booking in the first quarter valued at approximately $537,000. BDF Gestion purchased a new stake in Booking in the second quarter valued at approximately $6,897,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the first quarter worth approximately $519,000. Finally, Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in shares of Booking by 41.9% during the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 1,084 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,933,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $4,313.01 on Thursday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $2,733.04 and a 12 month high of $4,395.00. The stock has a market cap of $146.33 billion, a PE ratio of 32.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $4,029.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,838.71.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $39.22 by $2.68. Booking had a net margin of 22.46% and a negative return on equity of 200.87%. The firm had revenue of $5.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $37.62 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 177.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a dividend of $8.75 per share. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 6th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on BKNG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Booking from $4,025.00 to $3,860.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Booking from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of Booking from $4,150.00 to $4,100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $4,285.00 to $4,580.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4,164.11.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,722,379.07. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Booking Profile

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.