Wedgewood Partners Inc. Has $28.90 Million Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Wedgewood Partners Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,816 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 271 shares during the period. Booking comprises approximately 5.7% of Wedgewood Partners Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Wedgewood Partners Inc.’s holdings in Booking were worth $28,898,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of Booking by 16.4% in the fourth quarter. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,876 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,321,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Europe London LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $15,054,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Booking by 20.3% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 905 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,495,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 5,869 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,160,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp raised its stake in shares of Booking by 160.0% in the fourth quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 1,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,459,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of BKNG opened at $5,317.07 on Monday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $3,180.00 and a one year high of $5,337.24. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $4,735.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4,881.13. The stock has a market cap of $173.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.42.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $24.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $17.57 by $7.24. The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.58 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 159.34% and a net margin of 24.78%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $20.39 EPS. Analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $9.60 dividend. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on BKNG shares. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price objective on Booking from $5,540.00 to $4,330.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. BTIG Research raised Booking from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $5,500.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,567.00 to $4,692.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Cfra upgraded Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, JMP Securities raised their price objective on Booking from $5,600.00 to $5,700.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $5,299.29.

Booking 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.