Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Earns “Outperform” Rating from Wedbush

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by research analysts at Wedbush in a research report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $3,850.00 price objective on the business services provider’s stock. Wedbush’s price objective points to a potential upside of 12.72% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on BKNG. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Booking from $3,548.00 to $3,435.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Booking from $3,080.00 to $3,610.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $3,560.00 to $3,950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Booking from $3,580.00 to $4,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Booking currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $3,723.41.

Booking Stock Performance

Booking stock opened at $3,415.64 on Tuesday. Booking has a 1 year low of $2,456.93 and a 1 year high of $3,918.00. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $3,531.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3,395.06. The company has a market capitalization of $116.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The business services provider reported $32.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $29.72 by $2.28. Booking had a negative return on equity of 751.49% and a net margin of 20.08%. The business had revenue of $4.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $24.74 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Booking will post 176.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 59 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,700.00, for a total value of $218,300.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 289 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,069,300. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Booking news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,485.00, for a total transaction of $1,045,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,233 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,752,005. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 59 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3,700.00, for a total value of $218,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 289 shares in the company, valued at $1,069,300. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 5,461 shares of company stock worth $18,815,825. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in Booking by 22.6% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 4,574 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $14,106,000 after acquiring an additional 844 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 4,207 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,973,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the period. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Booking by 3,500.0% in the 3rd quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 72 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 11,212 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,577,000 after purchasing an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 85 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.