Melius Upgrades Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) to “Buy”

Melius upgraded shares of Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $220.00 price target on the online travel company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on EXPE. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $155.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $150.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Benchmark boosted their price objective on Expedia Group from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America upgraded Expedia Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $187.00 to $221.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Expedia Group from $130.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $171.63.

Expedia Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EXPE opened at $184.99 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $23.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.81, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.83. Expedia Group has a 1 year low of $107.25 and a 1 year high of $192.34. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $181.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $152.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Insider Buying and Selling at Expedia Group

In other news, CAO Lance A. Soliday sold 7,000 shares of Expedia Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.99, for a total value of $1,273,930.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,187 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,035,922.13. This trade represents a 38.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.15, for a total value of $1,851,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 168,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,198,700.75. The trade was a 5.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 28,951 shares of company stock valued at $5,045,310. Company insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Expedia Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EXPE. Fortem Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Expedia Group by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC now owns 2,450 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $457,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Expedia Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $525,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Expedia Group by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,937 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Expedia Group by 299.3% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 559 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new position in shares of Expedia Group during the third quarter worth $1,930,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

Expedia Group Company Profile

Expedia Group, Inc operates as an online travel company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through B2C, B2B, and trivago segments. Its B2C segment includes Brand Expedia, a full-service online travel brand offers various travel products and services; Hotels.com for lodging accommodations; Vrbo, an online marketplace for the alternative accommodations; Orbitz, Travelocity, Wotif Group, ebookers, CheapTickets, Hotwire.com and CarRentals.com.