Greenland Capital Management LP Reduces Stock Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Greenland Capital Management LP lessened its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 35.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,785 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 960 shares during the period. Booking makes up approximately 1.4% of Greenland Capital Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Greenland Capital Management LP’s holdings in Booking were worth $8,869,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new position in Booking in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 76.7% during the 4th quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,587 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,853,000 after purchasing an additional 1,123 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 125.8% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 35,467 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $176,217,000 after purchasing an additional 19,763 shares during the period. Elgethun Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Elgethun Capital Management now owns 102 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $507,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares during the period. Finally, Rathbones Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Booking by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 47,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $235,006,000 after buying an additional 1,321 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Stock Down 0.9 %

BKNG stock opened at $4,244.68 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $4,748.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4,761.84. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $3,180.00 and a 52 week high of $5,337.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $139.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.37.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $41.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $35.82 by $5.73. Booking had a negative return on equity of 159.34% and a net margin of 24.78%. The company had revenue of $5.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.18 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $9.60 per share. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on BKNG shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. UBS Group raised their target price on Booking from $5,560.00 to $5,960.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Booking from $4,600.00 to $5,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Booking from $4,850.00 to $5,522.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on Booking from $5,400.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $5,351.41.

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.