Cerity Partners LLC Lowers Holdings in Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)

Cerity Partners LLC decreased its stake in Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE - Free Report) by 9.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,012 shares of the online travel company's stock after selling 5,397 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Expedia Group were worth $9,691,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in Expedia Group by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 30,744 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $5,729,000 after purchasing an additional 4,656 shares in the last quarter. Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Expedia Group during the fourth quarter worth $1,791,000. Clare Market Investments LLC purchased a new position in Expedia Group during the fourth quarter valued at $319,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Expedia Group by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 60,003 shares of the online travel company's stock worth $11,180,000 after purchasing an additional 9,086 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cigna Investments Inc. New purchased a new stake in shares of Expedia Group in the fourth quarter worth about $238,000. 90.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Expedia Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EXPE traded up $2.73 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $154.32. The company had a trading volume of 602,601 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,998,254. Expedia Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $107.25 and a fifty-two week high of $207.73. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $176.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $175.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.65.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The online travel company reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.06 by ($0.22). Expedia Group had a return on equity of 52.41% and a net margin of 9.01%. On average, research analysts expect that Expedia Group, Inc. will post 12.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Expedia Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. 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. Expedia Group's payout ratio is 17.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on EXPE. Melius Research upgraded Expedia Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America raised shares of Expedia Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $187.00 to $221.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $208.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Expedia Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Expedia Group in a research note 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $191.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now owns 158,505 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,912,563.95. This represents a 5.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.70, for a total transaction of $1,028,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 74,502 shares in the company, valued at $15,325,061.40. This trade represents a 6.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.