Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 607 Shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lessened its stake in shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,629 shares of the online travel company’s stock after selling 607 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Expedia Group were worth $1,235,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EXPE. SRH Advisors LLC bought a new position in Expedia Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its position in Expedia Group by 676.2% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 163 shares of the online travel company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Expedia Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $51,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased 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 buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Expedia Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $72,000. Institutional investors own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

Expedia Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ EXPE opened at $173.81 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $22.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $183.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $172.76. Expedia Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $107.25 and a twelve month high of $207.73.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 52.41% and a net margin of 9.01%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Expedia Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This is an increase from Expedia Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. Expedia Group’s payout ratio is currently 17.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 5,000 shares of the business’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 sale, the insider now directly owns 74,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,325,061.40. The trade was a 6.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 25,000 shares of company stock worth $4,577,900. Corporate insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on EXPE shares. Barclays raised their price objective on Expedia Group from $166.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Argus lifted their target price on Expedia Group from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Expedia Group from $200.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Hsbc Global Res raised Expedia Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Expedia Group from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.