StockNews.com Downgrades Booking Holdings to Hold

Shares of Booking Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:BKNG) have received a downgrade from equities research firm StockNews.com. The rating has been changed from a previous "buy" rating to a more cautious "hold" rating in a recent research note released on Monday.

Analyst Opinions on Booking Holdings

Several other analysts have shared their thoughts on Booking Holdings as well. For instance, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $4,600.00 to $5,000.00, maintaining an "equal weight" rating. On January 13th, Robert W. Baird initiated coverage, assigning an "outperform" rating with a price target of $5,850.00. Furthermore, UBS Group increased their price target from $5,560.00 to $5,960.00 and endorsed a "buy" rating, while Royal Bank of Canada also raised their target for Booking from $5,250.00 to $5,900.00, classifying it as "outperform." Additionally, Tigress Financial upped their price target from $4,580.00 to $5,600.00, labeling the stock as a "strong buy." Currently, ten financial analysts rate the stock as a hold, twenty analysts have given it a buy rating, and two have issued a strong buy rating. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking Holdings holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target of $5,370.43.

Recent Performance of Booking Stock

During midday trading on Monday, BKNG stock experienced a notable increase of $58.44, bringing its price to $5,049.08. This uptick occurred on a trading volume of 350,182 shares, surpassing its average trading volume of 274,688 shares. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $4,901.28 and a 200-day moving average of $4,580.38. The company's market capitalization stands at $167.11 billion, with a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 29.18 and a P/E growth (P/E/G) ratio of 1.74, along with a beta of 1.39. Over the past year, Booking's stock has fluctuated between a low of $3,180.00 and a high of $5,337.24.

Booking's Recent Earnings Report

Booking Holdings last reported their earnings on February 20th. The company announced earnings per share (EPS) of $41.55, exceeding analysts' consensus estimate of $35.82 by $5.73. The total revenue for the quarter reached $5.47 billion, which was better than the projected $5.18 billion. The company also had a net profit margin of 24.78%, but exhibited a negative return on equity of 159.60%. Analysts on average expect that Booking will post an EPS of 207.62 for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investments in Booking

Hedge funds and institutional investors have made recent adjustments to their stakes in Booking Holdings. For example, Garner Asset Management Corp increased its position by 0.8% during the third quarter, now owning 258 shares valued at $1,087,000 after acquiring two additional shares. Likewise, Optimist Retirement Group LLC boosted its holdings by 2.2%, owning 91 shares worth $383,000. Covestor Ltd also expanded its position in the fourth quarter by 6.9%, now owning 31 shares valued at $158,000. SageView Advisory Group LLC added to its stake by 1.6%, now holding 124 shares valued at $616,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC also increased their holdings by 2.2%, now owning 95 shares worth $472,000. Overall, institutional investors own approximately 92.42% of Booking's shares.

Company Overview

Booking Holdings Inc, previously known as The Priceline Group Inc, is a provider of online reservation services in the travel and restaurant sectors. Through its various online travel brands, the company connects consumers looking to make travel arrangements with service providers around the world. Booking offers a wide range of accommodation options, including hotels, bed and breakfasts, hostels, apartments, vacation rentals, and other properties through platforms such as Booking.com, Priceline.com, and Agoda.com.

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