Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Cuts Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 0.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 105,210 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 695 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.32% of Booking worth $443,157,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Keystone Financial Services grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 6.2% during the third quarter. Keystone Financial Services now owns 395 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,664,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Tacita Capital Inc boosted its stake in Booking by 23.5% during the 3rd quarter. Tacita Capital Inc now owns 21 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 55.9% in the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 931 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,921,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 55.0% during the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 327 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,377,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, QCM Cayman Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the third quarter valued at $257,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on BKNG shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Booking from $4,100.00 to $4,700.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wedbush raised their price target on Booking from $3,900.00 to $4,750.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Booking from $4,448.00 to $4,850.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $3,590.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $4,749.83.

Insider Activity at Booking

In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total transaction of $388,761.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,787 shares in the company, valued at $14,722,379.07. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Booking Stock Up 2.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG opened at $5,065.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $167.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.38. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $3,076.54 and a 52 week high of $5,069.44. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $4,263.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $3,948.67.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.75%.

About Booking

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.