Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $4,253.58, but opened at $4,511.10. Booking shares last traded at $4,540.32, with a volume of 271,655 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Booking from $6,500.00 to $5,935.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on Booking from $5,433.00 to $5,407.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $6,100.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Wedbush dropped their target price on shares of Booking from $6,000.00 to $5,500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Booking from $6,250.00 to $5,600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Twenty-nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5,867.09.

Booking Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $4,806.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5,108.83. The firm has a market cap of $145.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.21.

Booking shares are going to split on Monday, April 6th. The 25-1 split was announced on Wednesday, February 18th. The newly issued shares will be issued to shareholders after the market closes on Thursday, April 2nd.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $48.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $47.96 by $0.84. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.12 billion. Booking had a net margin of 20.08% and a negative return on equity of 128.99%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $41.55 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $10.50 per share. This is a boost from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $9.60. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $42.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is 23.11%.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In related news, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 40 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,105.36, for a total value of $204,214.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,288,502.40. This represents a 4.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 953 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,181.34, for a total value of $4,937,817.02. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 19,615 shares in the company, valued at $101,631,984.10. The trade was a 4.63% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,108 shares of company stock valued at $15,287,682. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Booking

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Horizon Investment Services LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 0.3% during the second quarter. Horizon Investment Services LLC now owns 605 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,503,000 after buying an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Summitry LLC boosted its stake in shares of Booking by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Summitry LLC now owns 81 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $469,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. United Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of Booking by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. United Advisor Group LLC now owns 51 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $295,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares during the period. FourThought Financial Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Booking by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC now owns 119 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $689,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares during the period. Finally, SageView Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Booking by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 126 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $716,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Booking

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel company that operates a portfolio of consumer brands and technology platforms that facilitate the search for and booking of travel services. The company’s businesses focus on accommodations, transportation and related travel services through consumer-facing websites and apps as well as partner distribution channels. Booking Holdings was originally founded as Priceline in the late 1990s and adopted the Booking Holdings name in 2018; it is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Its core offerings include online reservations for hotels, vacation rentals and other lodging; flight and car rental search and booking; and ancillary services that support travel planning and on-property experiences.