Brokerages Set Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Price Target at $5,370.43

Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the thirty-one analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $5,370.43.

Several equities analysts have commented on BKNG shares. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $5,120.00 price objective (up previously from $4,900.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Booking from $4,850.00 to $5,522.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,560.00 to $5,960.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Booking from $4,470.00 to $5,248.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,500.00 to $5,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st.

Booking Trading Up 2.0 %

BKNG stock opened at $4,709.72 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $154.55 billion, a PE ratio of 27.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.40. Booking has a 12 month low of $3,180.00 and a 12 month high of $5,337.24. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $4,788.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $4,713.79.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $41.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $35.82 by $5.73. Booking had a negative return on equity of 159.34% and a net margin of 24.78%. The business had revenue of $5.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.18 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Booking will post 209.92 EPS for the current year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $9.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. Booking’s payout ratio is 22.19%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Booking

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Booking by 621,874.8% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 864,545 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,295,423,000 after purchasing an additional 864,406 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Booking by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 803,125 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,986,244,000 after buying an additional 6,009 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Booking by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 492,274 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,073,508,000 after buying an additional 2,321 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Booking by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 418,742 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,763,797,000 after buying an additional 13,429 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,958,352,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Company Profile

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.