Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Shares Acquired by Bellecapital International Ltd.

Bellecapital International Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,002 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Booking accounts for about 3.5% of Bellecapital International Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Bellecapital International Ltd.’s holdings in Booking were worth $19,884,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new stake in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in Booking by 600.0% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 7 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares during the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Booking by 80.0% in the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 9 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 4 shares during the period. Finally, Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Booking by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 10 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Price Performance

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $5,016.01 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $3,180.00 and a 1-year high of $5,337.24. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $4,898.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $4,615.15. The firm has a market cap of $164.60 billion, a PE ratio of 28.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.39.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $41.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $35.82 by $5.73. The company had revenue of $5.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.18 billion. Booking had a net margin of 24.78% and a negative return on equity of 159.34%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $9.60 per share. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. This is a boost from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is 22.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on Booking from $5,100.00 to $5,600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Baird R W upgraded Booking to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Booking from $5,500.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on Booking in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $5,850.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wedbush increased their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,000.00 to $5,500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Booking currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5,370.43.

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.