Booking Holdings

Management has been highly effective in deploying cash. The priority has been long-term business investment (tech, marketing) and returning capital to shareholders through buybacks and moderate dividends.

Since 2021, Booking has authorized tens of billions in stock repurchases and regularly buys back stock: $1.1B repurchased in Q4 2024 (with $7.7B still authorized) and an additional $20B authorized in early 2025). The dividend is small but growing (10% hike for 2025).

Capital expenditures for the software/platform and compliance tech remain small relative to cash flow (F/X losses aside). The company avoids major M&A except small strategic deals (e.g. minor minority investments) – a past acquisition attempt (Etraveli booking site) was abandoned on regulatory grounds.

Stock-based compensation is present but modest (<1% of market cap annually). Overall, the capital allocation strategy is shareholder-friendly: reinvest in the core at high ROIC, buy shares when possible, and only modestly dilute for compensation. This yields a very high score as the leadership efficiently maximizes shareholder value.