Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Holdings in Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,801 shares of the online travel company’s stock after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Expedia Group were worth $7,043,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SRH Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Expedia Group during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Sava Infond d.o.o. acquired a new stake in shares of Expedia Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in Expedia Group by 676.2% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 163 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Expedia Group by 75.5% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 272 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Expedia Group in the fourth quarter valued at $72,000. 90.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Expedia Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EXPE opened at $168.10 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $21.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.83. Expedia Group, Inc. has a one year low of $107.25 and a one year high of $207.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $182.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $174.72.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The online travel company reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.06 by ($0.22). Expedia Group had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 52.41%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. This is an increase from Expedia Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Expedia Group’s payout ratio is presently 17.68%.

Insider Activity

In other Expedia Group news, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.15, for a total transaction of $1,851,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 168,505 shares in the company, valued at $31,198,700.75. This represents a 5.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 5,000 shares of Expedia Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.70, for a total value of $1,028,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 74,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,325,061.40. The trade was a 6.29 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 25,000 shares of company stock worth $4,577,900. 6.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on EXPE shares. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Expedia Group in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Expedia Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $187.00 to $221.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Hsbc Global Res raised Expedia Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Expedia Group from $163.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Expedia Group from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $193.43.

About Expedia Group

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.