Qtron Investments LLC Lowers Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Qtron Investments LLC lessened its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 12.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 533 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 73 shares during the period. Qtron Investments LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $2,648,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its position in shares of Booking by 600.0% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 7 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 6 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of BKNG opened at $4,586.53 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $4,715.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $4,766.03. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $3,180.00 and a 1-year high of $5,337.24. The stock has a market cap of $150.51 billion, a PE ratio of 26.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.37.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $41.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $35.82 by $5.73. Booking had a net margin of 24.78% and a negative return on equity of 159.34%. The business had revenue of $5.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.18 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $9.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BKNG. UBS Group increased their price target on Booking from $5,560.00 to $5,960.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,005.00 to $5,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Booking from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Booking from $5,250.00 to $5,900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Booking from $5,248.00 to $4,567.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5,327.28.

Booking 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.