Rosenblatt Securities Upgrades Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) to “Strong-Buy”

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Rosenblatt Securities to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Monday, Zacks reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on BKNG. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and set a $236.00 price objective (up from $225.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $188.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $240.00 target price (up from $215.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $236.70.

Booking Trading Down 1.7%

BKNG opened at $195.69 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $147.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.07. Booking has a 12 month low of $150.14 and a 12 month high of $226.10. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $193.34 and a 200 day moving average of $177.91.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $7.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.19 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 102.96% and a net margin of 25.53%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $55.40 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Booking will post 10.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.48, for a total transaction of $610,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 73,400 shares in the company, valued at $14,935,432. The trade was a 3.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total value of $4,220,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,618,327.82. This represents a 25.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 80,550 shares of company stock worth $16,722,744 over the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Booking

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 419,256.0% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 214,651,580 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,259,498,000 after purchasing an additional 214,600,394 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Booking in the second quarter valued at approximately $11,646,302,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in Booking in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,691,186,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Booking in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,370,455,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Booking by 2,525.5% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,101,866 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,087,597,000 after buying an additional 5,869,459 shares during the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Booking News

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rosenblatt Securities initiated coverage with a Buy rating and a $245 price target, implying roughly 25% upside from the referenced price. The firm views Booking as the best-positioned online travel agency despite industry challenges, offering a potential catalyst for the shares. Rosenblatt sees Booking as the best-positioned online travel agency
• Positive Sentiment: Booking’s quarterly results exceeded expectations, with earnings of $2.54 per share versus a $2.43 consensus estimate and revenue of $7.35 billion versus expectations of $7.19 billion. Revenue increased 8.1% year over year, supporting the view that the company continues to benefit from travel demand.
• Positive Sentiment: Booking declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, or $1.68 annualized, representing a yield of approximately 0.9%. While modest, the payout may appeal to income-oriented investors and reflects continued shareholder returns.
• Neutral Sentiment: Priceline CEO Brigit Zimmerman discussed travel trends ahead of the Labor Day weekend. The comments could provide insight into demand and booking patterns, but the available report does not indicate whether the trends were favorable or unfavorable for Booking. Priceline CEO discusses travel trends
• Negative Sentiment: Booking has underperformed the broader market this year, potentially reflecting investor concerns about online travel growth or valuation. The company’s stock was reported down 6.66% year to date as of September 1, compared with an 11.65% gain for the S&P 500. Booking underperformance and Rosenblatt coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Insider Paulo Pisano sold 3,000 shares for approximately $610,440, reducing his position by 3.93%. Because the transaction occurred under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan, it is a relatively weak signal of bearish conviction, but it may still create modest selling-pressure concerns. Booking insider stock sale

Booking Company Profile

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.