Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) Stock Now Rated “Hold” by Wall Street Analysts

Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the forty research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twenty-one have given a hold recommendation and eighteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $315.24.

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Expedia Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $285.00 target price on shares of Expedia Group in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Argus increased their price objective on shares of Expedia Group from $270.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Expedia Group from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Benchmark boosted their price target on Expedia Group from $290.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th.

Insider Activity at Expedia Group

In other news, Director Craig A. Jacobson sold 3,133 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $328.52, for a total transaction of $1,029,253.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 29,832 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,800,408.64. This trade represents a 9.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Lance A. Soliday sold 2,810 shares of Expedia Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $323.65, for a total value of $909,456.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 12,006 shares in the company, valued at $3,885,741.90. This represents a 18.97% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 11,950 shares of company stock valued at $3,881,995 over the last 90 days. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EXPE. Mather Group LLC. increased its position in shares of Expedia Group by 55.0% during the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,173 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $309,000 after buying an additional 416 shares during the period. Western Financial Corp CA raised its position in shares of Expedia Group by 0.9% in the third quarter. Western Financial Corp CA now owns 4,389 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $1,156,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Boyce & Associates Wealth Consulting Inc. bought a new position in Expedia Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $5,745,000. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Expedia Group during the third quarter worth about $377,000. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Expedia Group in the third quarter worth approximately $727,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Expedia Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Expedia Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Multi-year NHL partnership expands Expedia’s marketing reach. Expedia became the official travel partner of the NHL in the U.S. and Canada, gaining promotional and marketing rights across North America. The agreement could strengthen customer acquisition, brand awareness and travel-booking demand, although the financial terms and return on investment were not disclosed. Expedia NHL partnership
• Positive Sentiment: 2027 travel trends point to continued opportunities for bookings. Expedia’s annual Unpack ’27 report identified trends including short “one-night” getaways, hobby-led and entertainment-inspired trips, emerging destinations, and more purposeful travel. The findings may support Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo’s ability to target evolving customer preferences, though the report is promotional and does not change earnings estimates. Expedia Unpack 27 travel trends report
• Negative Sentiment: Lawsuit alleges Expedia helps drive hotel prices higher. A reported legal complaint claims Expedia has significant control of online hotel bookings and may contribute to hotel prices being 15% to 30% higher. The allegations could increase regulatory, litigation and reputational risks if they gain traction; the claims have not been established in court, and potential financial damages or operational impact remain unclear. Lawsuit alleging Expedia contributes to higher hotel prices

Expedia Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EXPE opened at $274.69 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $32.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.65, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.36. Expedia Group has a one year low of $185.34 and a one year high of $342.00. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $293.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $263.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The online travel company reported $5.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.22 by $0.54. The firm had revenue of $4.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.17 billion. Expedia Group had a net margin of 12.97% and a return on equity of 87.32%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.24 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Expedia Group will post 17.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 27th were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 27th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Expedia Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.97%.

About Expedia Group

Expedia Group, Inc is an online travel company that connects travelers with a broad range of travel products and services. Its platforms support the search, comparison and booking of lodging, air travel, car rentals, cruises, vacation packages, activities and other travel-related offerings.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that includes Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo, Travelocity, Orbitz, Wotif and ebookers. Through these brands, Expedia Group serves individual travelers, property owners, travel suppliers and business partners across markets in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and other international regions.

Expedia Group traces its origins to Expedia, which was established within Microsoft in 1996 and became an independent public company in 1999.