Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases 23 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 169 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $712,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted 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 worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Booking in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Booking in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Stock Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ BKNG opened at $4,350.82 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $3,980.33 and its 200 day moving average is $3,820.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $145.84 billion, a PE ratio of 30.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.40. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $2,733.04 and a twelve month high of $4,394.95.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $39.22 by $2.68. Booking had a net margin of 22.46% and a negative return on equity of 200.87%. The company had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $37.62 EPS. Booking’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 176.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th were given a dividend of $8.75 per share. This represents a $35.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 6th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the insider now 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on BKNG. B. Riley dropped their target price on Booking from $4,900.00 to $4,650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Oppenheimer cut their target price on Booking from $4,600.00 to $4,200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Booking from $4,150.00 to $4,100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,000.00 to $4,200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Booking from $3,950.00 to $3,750.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,130.18.

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.