Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) CEO Sells $2,871,414.90 in Stock

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) CEO Glenn Fogel sold 669 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4,292.10, for a total value of $2,871,414.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 12,596 shares in the company, valued at $54,063,291.60. This trade represents a 5.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Booking Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG opened at $4,294.29 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $4,582.04 and its 200 day moving average is $5,015.75. The stock has a market cap of $136.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.21. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $3,765.45 and a 1-year high of $5,839.41.

Booking shares are set to split before the market opens on Monday, April 6th. The 25-1 split was announced on Wednesday, February 18th. The newly issued shares will be distributed to shareholders after the market closes on Thursday, April 2nd.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $48.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $47.96 by $0.84. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.12 billion. Booking had a net margin of 20.08% and a negative return on equity of 128.99%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $41.55 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $10.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $42.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $9.60. Booking’s payout ratio is 25.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on BKNG shares. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $6,250.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on Booking from $5,407.00 to $4,698.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Booking in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Mizuho upgraded Booking from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $6,000.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Booking from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $6,150.00 to $5,500.00 in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Twenty-nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5,845.61.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Booking by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,997,949 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $16,055,006,000 after buying an additional 23,159 shares during the last quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 191,965.8% during the fourth quarter. J. Stern & Co. LLP now owns 2,832,970 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $15,171,489,000 after acquiring an additional 2,831,495 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Booking by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,435,116 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,685,520,000 after acquiring an additional 6,976 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Booking by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 966,121 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,173,899,000 after acquiring an additional 128,700 shares during the period. Finally, Dodge & Cox boosted its holdings in Booking by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 732,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,920,535,000 after acquiring an additional 56,999 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Booking

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company beat Q4 estimates, raised the dividend and is executing a 25-for-1 stock split — all catalysts that typically support demand from retail and income-seeking investors. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains largely favorable (consensus “Moderate Buy,” many Buy ratings and several high price targets), which provides a baseline of institutional support.
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest data for March shows zero shares (anomalous), suggesting a data-quality issue rather than a meaningful change in bearish positioning; treat these figures with caution until corrected.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/industry write-ups highlight Booking’s merchant model as a growth lever but flag rising costs and demand uncertainty — a mixed fundamental read that could limit near-term upside while supporting longer-term revenue control. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Glenn Fogel sold 669 shares (~$2.87M), trimming his stake; insider sales often trigger short‑term selling or heightened caution among investors. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Broader narrative notes a roughly 6‑month decline (~‑21%) and premium valuation concerns amid macro uncertainty — such sentiment can amplify profit-taking despite recent beats. Read More.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel company that operates a portfolio of consumer brands and technology platforms that facilitate the search for and booking of travel services. The company’s businesses focus on accommodations, transportation and related travel services through consumer-facing websites and apps as well as partner distribution channels. Booking Holdings was originally founded as Priceline in the late 1990s and adopted the Booking Holdings name in 2018; it is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Its core offerings include online reservations for hotels, vacation rentals and other lodging; flight and car rental search and booking; and ancillary services that support travel planning and on-property experiences.