Wedbush Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) Stock

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) had its target price boosted by Wedbush from $130.00 to $180.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the online travel company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on EXPE. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Expedia Group from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Expedia Group from $144.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Expedia Group in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $148.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen lowered shares of Expedia Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $130.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Expedia Group in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $159.88.

Expedia Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EXPE traded up $6.63 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $180.76. The stock had a trading volume of 4,871,457 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,550,834. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.45, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company has a 50 day moving average of $149.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $133.47. Expedia Group has a twelve month low of $107.25 and a twelve month high of $190.40. The firm has a market cap of $23.53 billion, a PE ratio of 32.28, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.78.

Expedia Group (NASDAQ:EXPE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The online travel company reported $3.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.17 by $0.34. Expedia Group had a net margin of 6.09% and a return on equity of 47.55%. The business had revenue of $3.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Expedia Group will post 8.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Expedia Group news, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 12,602 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.50, for a total transaction of $1,657,163.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 89,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,829,740. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Expedia Group news, Director Dara Khosrowshahi sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.21, for a total value of $1,502,100.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 208,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,319,536.05. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Robert J. Dzielak sold 12,602 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.50, for a total transaction of $1,657,163.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 89,960 shares in the company, valued at $11,829,740. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 48,019 shares of company stock worth $6,958,891. 6.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Expedia Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in Expedia Group during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Expedia Group by 93.8% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 217 shares of the online travel company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Expedia Group during the first quarter worth approximately $40,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Expedia Group during the first quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Cedar Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Expedia Group during the first quarter worth approximately $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.76% of the company’s stock.

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.