Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Price Target Lowered to $215.00 at Robert W. Baird

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) had its price target cut by Robert W. Baird from $234.00 to $215.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Booking from $215.00 to $214.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Booking from $250.00 to $224.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings lowered Booking from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Booking in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $240.00 target price on Booking and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $226.72.

Booking Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of Booking stock opened at $173.98 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $173.66 and its 200-day moving average is $192.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $137.76 billion, a PE ratio of 26.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.20. Booking has a 12-month low of $150.62 and a 12-month high of $233.58.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $27.56 by ($26.42). The company had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.51 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 128.99% and a net margin of 20.08%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Booking will post 10.64 EPS for the current year.

Booking Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. Booking’s payout ratio is presently 25.26%.

Insider Activity at Booking

In related news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 16,726 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.36, for a total transaction of $3,100,331.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 298,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,269,532.64. The trade was a 5.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total transaction of $216,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 16,050 shares in the company, valued at $3,081,600. This trade represents a 6.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 60,876 shares of company stock valued at $10,559,629. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Booking

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in BKNG. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 34.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 251 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,249,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking by 25.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $955,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its stake in shares of Booking by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 87 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $504,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $179,000. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

More Booking News

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat expectations on key metrics — revenue and bookings grew double digits and EBITDA/revenue showed strength, which underpins the near-term bullish case. Booking Holdings Q1 Earnings & Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted AI initiatives that are cutting costs and improving customer experience — investors see operational leverage from AI as a medium-term tailwind. Booking Holdings AI Assistants Slash Costs and Boost Bookings
• Positive Sentiment: KAYAK launched a conversational “Ask AI” feature that showcases product-level innovation and could help user engagement and conversion. KAYAK Launches Ask AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusual options flow: very large spikes in both calls and puts (massive call buying but also a surge in puts) — implies heightened short-term speculation and hedging rather than a one-sided directional bet. (Market data summary)
• Negative Sentiment: Company cut its full‑year outlook, citing the Middle East conflict’s hit to travel demand — the guidance pullback is the primary reason some investors trimmed multiple months of optimism. Booking Holdings Cuts Full-Year Outlook
• Negative Sentiment: Broad analyst re‑ratings: several firms trimmed price targets (Goldman, Citi, HSBC, Mizuho, Deutsche Bank, RBC and others), putting downward pressure on sentiment despite many ratings remaining “buy/overweight.” Example: Goldman PT adjustment. Goldman Sachs Adjusts PT on Booking
• Negative Sentiment: Insider and large‑fund activity shows selling pressure (notable insider sales reported and some hedge‑fund trimming), which can sap conviction for short-term buyers. Quiver Quant — Insider Trading & Hedge Fund Moves
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing geopolitical and macro uncertainty (fuel/airline cost pressures, region-specific travel weakness) keeps the outlook uncertain and helps explain the muted price response to the quarter. Q1 Earnings Call Highlights

About Booking

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.