Great Lakes Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Position in Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC cut its stake in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 140,048 shares of the online travel company’s stock after selling 6,575 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC owned 0.11% of Expedia Group worth $26,095,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Expedia Group by 934.5% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,531 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $844,000 after acquiring an additional 4,093 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Expedia Group by 75.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 272 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Expedia Group by 43.0% during the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 69,596 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $12,968,000 after acquiring an additional 20,925 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Expedia Group by 1,632.1% during the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 104,653 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $19,500,000 after acquiring an additional 98,611 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clare Market Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Expedia Group during the 4th quarter valued at $319,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

Expedia Group Price Performance

NASDAQ EXPE opened at $163.75 on Wednesday. Expedia Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $107.25 and a 12 month high of $207.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.10 billion, a PE ratio of 18.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.82. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $186.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $171.45.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The online travel company reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by ($0.22). Expedia Group had a return on equity of 52.41% and a net margin of 9.01%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This is an increase from Expedia Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. Expedia Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EXPE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $210.00 target price (up previously from $180.00) on shares of Expedia Group in a report on Friday, February 7th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Expedia Group from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Expedia Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Expedia Group from $208.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Expedia Group from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $192.64.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 5,000 shares of Expedia Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.70, for a total value of $1,028,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 74,502 shares in the company, valued at $15,325,061.40. This trade represents a 6.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of Expedia Group stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.79, for a total transaction of $1,697,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 158,505 shares in the company, valued at $26,912,563.95. This trade represents a 5.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 25,000 shares of company stock worth $4,577,900 in the last quarter. 6.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Expedia Group Company Profile

Expedia Group, Inc operates as an online travel company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through B2C, B2B, and trivago segments. Its B2C segment includes Brand Expedia, a full-service online travel brand offers various travel products and services; Hotels.com for lodging accommodations; Vrbo, an online marketplace for the alternative accommodations; Orbitz, Travelocity, Wotif Group, ebookers, CheapTickets, Hotwire.com and CarRentals.com.