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

Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-one analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $3,876.96.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BKNG. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Booking from $3,550.00 to $3,900.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. B. Riley began coverage on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $4,400.00 target price on the stock. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $3,850.00 price target on shares of Booking in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Booking from $3,435.00 to $3,494.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other Booking news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 4,302 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,422.75, for a total value of $14,724,670.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 33,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $114,826,417. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Booking news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 227 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,580.75, for a total value of $812,830.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,157,314.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 4,302 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,422.75, for a total transaction of $14,724,670.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 33,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $114,826,417. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 5,651 shares of company stock worth $19,485,975. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Booking

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BKNG. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Stock Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $3,795.35 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $3,604.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $3,502.62. Booking has a 52 week low of $2,456.93 and a 52 week high of $3,918.00. The stock has a market cap of $128.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.46, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The business services provider reported $20.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $14.03 by $6.36. Booking had a net margin of 21.81% and a negative return on equity of 288.35%. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $11.60 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Booking will post 178.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.25%.

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.