Point72 Hong Kong Ltd Acquires Shares of 3,503 Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 3,503 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $17,404,000. Booking makes up 1.1% of Point72 Hong Kong Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in Booking by 16.4% during the fourth quarter. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,876 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $9,321,000 after buying an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 905 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,495,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Booking by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 5,869 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,160,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its position in Booking by 160.0% during the fourth quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 1,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,459,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the period. Finally, Hickory Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter worth $1,624,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Booking Stock Performance

BKNG opened at $5,216.55 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $4,700.30 and its 200-day moving average is $4,864.57. Booking Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $3,180.00 and a one year high of $5,337.24. The company has a market capitalization of $169.75 billion, a PE ratio of 30.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.42.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $24.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $17.57 by $7.24. Booking had a negative return on equity of 159.34% and a net margin of 24.78%. The business had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $20.39 EPS. Booking’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $9.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKNG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Booking from $5,000.00 to $4,800.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,120.00 to $5,077.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. B. Riley raised their price target on Booking from $6,000.00 to $6,100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,567.00 to $4,692.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Ten research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5,299.29.

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.