Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Lowers Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. trimmed its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,547 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 397 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Booking were worth $42,514,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Burling Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,595,000. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 30,900 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $153,524,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Totem Point Management LLC lifted its position in Booking by 76.4% in the 4th quarter. Totem Point Management LLC now owns 1,907 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $9,475,000 after buying an additional 826 shares during the last quarter. Quantessence Capital LLC bought a new stake in Booking in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,212,000. Finally, Alta Advisers Ltd boosted its stake in Booking by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Alta Advisers Ltd now owns 109 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $542,000 after buying an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Booking Stock Up 2.9 %

BKNG opened at $4,731.03 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $155.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.34, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $4,663.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $4,784.04. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $3,180.00 and a twelve month high of $5,337.24.

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

Booking Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $9.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Booking's previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. Booking's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on BKNG. Cfra raised shares of Booking from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. JMP Securities cut their price target on shares of Booking from $6,100.00 to $5,600.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. B. Riley lifted their price objective on Booking from $5,700.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. DA Davidson increased their target price on Booking from $5,005.00 to $5,800.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on Booking from $5,540.00 to $4,330.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Eleven investment 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Booking currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $5,278.66.

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.

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