BTIG Research Reaffirms “Buy” Rating for Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by BTIG Research in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $250.00 target price on the business services provider’s stock. BTIG Research‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 57.85% from the stock’s previous close.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. TD Cowen upgraded Booking to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $230.00 price objective on Booking and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price objective (up from $240.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $234.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $230.00 price objective on Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $233.71.

Booking Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of Booking stock opened at $158.38 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $119.00 billion, a PE ratio of 17.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $179.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $177.43. Booking has a 12 month low of $150.14 and a 12 month high of $220.81.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other Booking news, Director Robert Mylod, Jr. sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $200,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,800,000. This trade represents a 6.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter Millones, Jr. sold 50,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.59, for a total value of $10,389,879.50. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 375,025 shares in the company, valued at approximately $77,851,439.75. This trade represents a 11.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 sold 84,550 shares of company stock valued at $17,426,865 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Booking

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BKNG. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Booking by 1,615.6% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 13,931 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,483,000 after purchasing an additional 13,119 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG acquired a new stake in Booking during the second quarter valued at approximately $11,687,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 2,860.8% during the second quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 12,554 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,238,000 after purchasing an additional 12,130 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in Booking by 2,549.7% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 88,949 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $16,077,000 after purchasing an additional 85,592 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 1,663.9% during the second quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 28,698 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,115,000 after purchasing an additional 27,071 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel and restaurant-reservation company that connects consumers with travel providers through digital platforms and mobile applications. Its services include accommodations, flights, rental cars, cruises, vacation packages, restaurant reservations and other travel-related offerings.

The company operates a portfolio of well-known brands, including Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, OpenTable, Rentalcars.com and Kayak-associated travel services.