UBS Group Issues Positive Forecast for Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Stock Price

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) had its target price upped by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $249.00 to $266.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the business services provider’s stock. UBS Group’s price target points to a potential upside of 38.08% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Booking from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Booking from $210.00 to $202.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays set a $210.00 price target on Booking and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $175.00 target price (down from $180.00) on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on Booking from $230.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $227.23.

Booking Trading Down 4.3%

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG traded down $8.65 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $192.65. 4,535,516 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,609,230. Booking has a 1 year low of $150.14 and a 1 year high of $231.80. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $174.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $177.49. The stock has a market cap of $149.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.30, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.07.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $5.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.52 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 117.14% and a net margin of 22.23%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Booking will post 10.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Booking

In other Booking news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.00, for a total value of $216,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 16,508 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,169,536. This trade represents a 6.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total transaction of $10,229,375.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 425,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,572,025.25. The trade was a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BKNG. Platform Technology Partners boosted its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,190.2% in the second quarter. Platform Technology Partners now owns 3,985 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $710,000 after acquiring an additional 3,811 shares in the last quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,542.2% in the second quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. now owns 63,175 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $11,260,000 after buying an additional 60,784 shares in the last quarter. Sunpointe LLC increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,480.8% in the second quarter. Sunpointe LLC now owns 1,342 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $239,000 after buying an additional 1,290 shares in the last quarter. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,614.8% during the second quarter. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC now owns 2,932 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $523,000 after purchasing an additional 2,824 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quaker Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Booking by 1,895.5% during the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 439 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 417 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.