Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) Shares Bought by DnB Asset Management AS

DnB Asset Management AS grew its stake in Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 22,419 shares of the online travel company’s stock after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Expedia Group were worth $4,177,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. SRH Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Expedia Group in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Sava Infond d.o.o. purchased a new position in shares of Expedia Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Expedia Group by 676.2% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 163 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Expedia Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $72,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

Expedia Group Price Performance

EXPE stock opened at $168.10 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $182.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $174.72. 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 $21.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.57, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.83. Expedia Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $107.25 and a 1 year high of $207.73.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The online travel company reported $1.84 earnings per share (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%. Analysts anticipate that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. This is a boost from Expedia Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. Expedia Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Expedia Group news, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.70, for a total transaction of $1,028,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 74,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,325,061.40. This trade represents a 6.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,912,563.95. The trade was a 5.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 25,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,577,900 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Expedia Group from $235.00 to $230.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Expedia Group from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Expedia Group in a research note on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Expedia Group from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $215.00 price objective (up previously from $180.00) on shares of Expedia Group in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.