Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-two ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $4,064.21.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on BKNG shares. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,200.00 to $4,342.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of Booking from $3,850.00 to $4,200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Booking from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Booking from $4,150.00 to $4,100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd.

Booking Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG opened at $4,097.08 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $3,772.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $3,733.66. The company has a market cap of $139.01 billion, a PE ratio of 30.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.40. Booking has a 12-month low of $2,733.04 and a 12-month high of $4,144.32.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $39.22 by $2.68. The company had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.77 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 200.87% and a net margin of 22.46%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $37.62 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Booking will post 176.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a dividend of $8.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total transaction of $388,761.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,722,379.07. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4,067.65, for a total transaction of $3,050,737.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,721 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $100,556,375.65. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total value of $388,761.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,787 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,722,379.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Booking

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Centaurus Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Booking by 49.5% in the second quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 145 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $575,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its stake in shares of Booking by 74.4% in the second quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 26,515 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $105,039,000 after purchasing an additional 11,315 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the second quarter worth about $6,168,000. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its position in Booking by 19.5% during the second quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 8,827 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,968,000 after acquiring an additional 1,440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ariadne Wealth Management LP purchased a new position in Booking during the second quarter valued at approximately $40,237,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Booking

Booking Holdings Inc, formerly The Priceline Group Inc, is a provider of travel and restaurant online reservation and related services. The Company, through its online travel companies (OTCs), connects consumers wishing to make travel reservations with providers of travel services across the world. It offers consumers an array of accommodation reservations (including hotels, bed and breakfasts, hostels, apartments, vacation rentals and other properties) through its Booking.com, priceline.com and agoda.com brands.