Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Stake Boosted by Capital International Sarl

Capital International Sarl raised its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,836 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 797 shares during the quarter. Booking makes up about 1.4% of Capital International Sarl's holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Capital International Sarl's holdings in Booking were worth $58,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Passumpsic Savings Bank boosted its holdings in Booking by 2.6% in the third quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank now owns 699 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,944,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC increased its stake in Booking by 268.5% in the 3rd quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 2,410 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $10,147,000 after buying an additional 1,756 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 3,561.9% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,076 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $12,955,000 after purchasing an additional 2,992 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in shares of Booking by 27.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 1,550 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $6,529,000 after buying an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Trust Co. N.A. boosted its stake in shares of Booking by 404.4% in the third quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 459 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,933,000 after buying an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Booking from $5,005.00 to $5,800.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,250.00 to $5,900.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Booking from $5,100.00 to $5,600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Booking from $5,000.00 to $4,800.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Booking from $5,155.00 to $5,900.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $5,278.66.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of BKNG traded up $108.15 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $4,706.23. The stock had a trading volume of 98,454 shares, compared to its average volume of 248,749. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $4,669.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $4,784.40. The company has a market capitalization of $154.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.37. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $3,180.00 and a 52 week high of $5,337.24.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $41.55 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 the consensus estimate of $5.18 billion. Booking had a net margin of 24.78% and a negative return on equity of 159.34%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $9.60 dividend. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Booking's previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. Booking's dividend payout ratio is 22.19%.

Booking 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.