Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Cuts Stock Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. decreased its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 0.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,833 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 520 shares during the quarter. Booking comprises about 2.4% of Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Booking were worth $357,327,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BKNG. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Booking during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its position in Booking by 133.3% during the second quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Kings Path Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on BKNG. Bank of America boosted their target price on Booking from $4,448.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Booking from $5,000.00 to $5,500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Booking from $4,800.00 to $5,400.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Booking from $4,100.00 to $5,500.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Booking from $3,900.00 to $5,250.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,785.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Booking news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total transaction of $388,761.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,722,379.07. The trade was a 2.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Booking Price Performance

Booking stock opened at $5,177.15 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $171.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.13, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $4,482.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $4,043.93. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $3,079.50 and a 1-year high of $5,216.00.

Booking Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $8.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. Booking’s payout ratio is 23.75%.

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.