Essex Financial Services Inc. Acquires 19 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Essex Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 8.7% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 237 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Booking were worth $939,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Booking in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of 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 bought a new position in shares of Booking during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Kings Path Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Booking during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of Booking during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Stock Performance

BKNG stock opened at $3,909.23 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $131.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.38. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $2,733.04 and a 52-week high of $4,144.32. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $3,791.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3,696.62.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $39.22 by $2.68. Booking had a negative return on equity of 200.87% and a net margin of 22.46%. The business had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $37.62 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 177.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. Booking’s payout ratio is presently 26.25%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BKNG. HSBC increased their target price on Booking from $4,220.00 to $4,230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Erste Group Bank raised Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. DA Davidson reduced 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Booking from $4,275.00 to $4,105.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Tigress Financial increased their price target on Booking from $4,285.00 to $4,580.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Booking currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $4,068.32.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 3,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,722,379.07. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,067.65, for a total value of $3,050,737.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 24,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $100,556,375.65. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,722,379.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Booking Company 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.