KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Invests $9.90 Million in Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 53,142 shares of the online travel company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,902,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SRH Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Expedia Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake 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 worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Expedia Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Expedia Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $72,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

Expedia Group Trading Up 2.6 %

Expedia Group stock opened at $178.29 on Tuesday. Expedia Group, Inc. has a one year low of $107.25 and a one year high of $207.73. The business’s fifty day moving average is $183.62 and its 200 day moving average is $173.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.97 billion, a PE ratio of 19.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last announced 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 net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 52.41%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 EPS for the current 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 represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This is an increase from Expedia Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Expedia Group’s payout ratio is 17.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EXPE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Baird R W raised Expedia Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Morgan Stanley upped 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. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Expedia Group in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Melius upgraded shares of Expedia Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Expedia Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Nineteen 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $193.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Expedia Group

In other Expedia Group news, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.15, for a total transaction of $1,851,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 168,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,198,700.75. The trade was a 5.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 25,000 shares of company stock worth $4,577,900. Insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Expedia Group 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.