Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $4,398.00 and last traded at $4,394.02, with a volume of 29407 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $4,347.59.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on BKNG. B. Riley dropped their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,900.00 to $4,650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Booking from $3,976.00 to $4,173.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated a “neutral” rating and set a $3,590.00 price objective on shares of Booking in a research report on Monday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Booking from $4,025.00 to $3,860.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson cut their target price on Booking from $4,150.00 to $4,100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $4,256.89.

Booking Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $4,100.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $3,866.59. The company has a market capitalization of $149.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The business services provider reported $41.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $39.22 by $2.68. The business had revenue of $5.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.77 billion. Booking had a net margin of 22.46% and a negative return on equity of 200.87%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $37.62 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 177.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Paulo Pisano sold 100 shares of Booking stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3,887.61, for a total value of $388,761.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,787 shares in the company, valued at $14,722,379.07. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $5,322,600,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 4,565.4% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 62,610 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $227,143,000 after purchasing an additional 61,268 shares in the last quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 29.2% in the first quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 193,515 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $702,049,000 after purchasing an additional 43,743 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Booking by 106.0% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 71,334 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $282,590,000 after buying an additional 36,710 shares during the period. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Booking by 2,315.8% during the second quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 36,793 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $145,755,000 after buying an additional 35,270 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.