Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) Sets New 12-Month High Following Dividend Announcement

Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $193.50 and last traded at $200.08, with a volume of 159633 shares. The stock had previously closed at $172.57.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This is a boost from Expedia Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on EXPE. BTIG Research lifted their price target on Expedia Group from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Expedia Group from $135.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Expedia Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 14th. Argus upped their price objective on Expedia Group from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Wedbush increased their price objective on Expedia Group from $130.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Expedia Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.25.

Expedia Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.95 billion, a PE ratio of 25.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.82. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $182.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $159.92.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The online travel company reported $1.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by ($0.22). Expedia Group had a net margin of 7.97% and a return on equity of 49.25%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 8.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.79, for a total value of $1,697,900.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 158,505 shares in the company, valued at $26,912,563.95. This represents a 5.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 1,951 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.00, for a total transaction of $351,180.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 85,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,345,000. This trade represents a 2.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 28,951 shares of company stock valued at $5,174,510 over the last quarter. 6.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Expedia Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SRH Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Expedia Group in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in 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. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Expedia Group by 709.8% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 332 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 291 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Expedia Group during the third quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Expedia Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $72,000. 90.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.