Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com cut shares of Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Friday.

BKNG has been the topic of a number of other reports. Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Booking from $5,000.00 to $5,500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho upped their target price on Booking from $4,250.00 to $4,800.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. B. Riley raised their price target on Booking from $4,650.00 to $5,100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays upped their price objective on Booking from $4,500.00 to $5,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Booking from $4,000.00 to $4,200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Twelve investment 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4,708.45.

Booking Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of BKNG opened at $4,776.46 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $158.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.41, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.38. Booking has a 52 week low of $2,888.45 and a 52 week high of $4,856.60. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $4,156.53 and a 200-day moving average of $3,896.46.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $8.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $35.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Booking’s payout ratio is currently 23.75%.

Insider Transactions at Booking

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 transaction of $388,761.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,722,379.07. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Booking

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Booking in the third quarter worth about $5,322,600,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in Booking by 4,565.4% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 62,610 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $227,143,000 after buying an additional 61,268 shares in the last quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in Booking by 29.2% during 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 acquiring an additional 43,743 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Booking by 106.0% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 71,334 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $282,590,000 after acquiring 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 2nd quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 36,793 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $145,755,000 after purchasing an additional 35,270 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

About Booking

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.