Ashton Thomas Securities LLC Has $2.17 Million Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC reduced its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 374 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 37 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $2,165,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in shares of Booking in the second quarter valued at about $816,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Booking by 6.7% during the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 12,236 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $70,837,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares in the last quarter. CenterStar Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Booking during the second quarter worth approximately $1,755,000. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC grew its position in Booking by 11.0% during the second quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 1,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,260,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank lifted its position in shares of Booking by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 221 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,279,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Booking Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $5,424.55 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $4,060.98 and a twelve month high of $5,839.41. The stock has a market cap of $175.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.73, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.35. The business’s fifty day moving average is $5,529.24 and its 200 day moving average is $5,290.99.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $55.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $50.32 by $5.08. The firm had revenue of $6.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.54 billion. Booking had a net margin of 19.23% and a negative return on equity of 134.19%. The business’s revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $41.90 earnings per share. Booking has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $9.60 per share. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 5th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BKNG shares. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $6,700.00 price target (up previously from $6,100.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Booking from $5,750.00 to $6,300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Booking from $5,900.00 to $6,100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $5,750.00 target price (up previously from $5,077.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Booking currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5,807.89.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 15 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,500.00, for a total transaction of $82,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 747 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,108,500. This represents a 1.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Larry Quinlan sold 64 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,587.11, for a total transaction of $357,575.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,089,486.45. This trade represents a 24.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,195 shares of company stock worth $23,467,630 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.16% 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.