Evercore ISI Increases Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Price Target to $4,500.00

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) had its price objective increased by Evercore ISI from $3,800.00 to $4,500.00 in a research note released on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Booking in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. They issued an outperform rating and a $4,150.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $3,080.00 to $3,610.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Friday, January 19th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Booking from $3,900.00 to $3,950.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Friday. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Booking from $3,600.00 to $4,100.00 and gave the stock a positive rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Booking from $3,548.00 to $3,435.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 23rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $3,823.00.

Booking Stock Up 3.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG traded up $104.47 during trading on Friday, reaching $3,577.38. 534,715 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 200,734. Booking has a 52 week low of $2,456.93 and a 52 week high of $3,918.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.70 billion, a PE ratio of 26.83, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s 50 day moving average is $3,524.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3,399.84.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The business services provider reported $20.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $14.03 by $6.36. The firm had revenue of $4.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.25 billion. Booking had a net margin of 21.81% and a negative return on equity of 433.49%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $11.60 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Booking will post 176.1 EPS for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $8.75 per share. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. Booking’s payout ratio is 26.25%.

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 transaction, the director now owns 289 shares in the company, valued at $1,069,300. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 4,302 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,422.75, for a total value of $14,724,670.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 33,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $114,826,417. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Radakovich Lynn Vojvodich sold 59 shares of the business’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 sale, the director now owns 289 shares in the company, valued at $1,069,300. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 5,483 shares of company stock valued at $18,891,445 in the last ninety days. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Booking

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in shares of Booking by 22.6% during the 3rd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 4,574 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $14,106,000 after purchasing an additional 844 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 529 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its position in shares of Booking by 0.7% in the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 601 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,854,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Booking in the third quarter worth approximately $256,000. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by 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.