Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Buys 9,945 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 16.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 70,471 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 9,945 shares during the quarter. Booking makes up 0.9% of Royal London Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.21% of Booking worth $350,130,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. 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 purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 600.0% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 7 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Booking Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG traded up $92.46 during trading on Monday, reaching $4,709.72. 232,020 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 232,611. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $3,180.00 and a 52-week high of $5,337.24. The business's fifty day moving average is $4,789.60 and its 200-day moving average is $4,707.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $154.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.40.

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Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced 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 business had revenue of $5.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.18 billion. Booking had a net margin of 24.78% and a negative return on equity of 159.34%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors 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 yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Booking's previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. Booking's payout ratio is currently 22.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on BKNG shares. Piper Sandler reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $5,120.00 target price (up previously from $4,900.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Friday, February 21st. Wedbush increased their price objective on Booking from $5,000.00 to $5,500.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Robert W. Baird began coverage on Booking in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $5,850.00 target price for the company. Mizuho upped their price target on Booking from $5,400.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,575.00 to $5,750.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Booking currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $5,370.43.

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.