Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG Shares Acquired by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 59.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,467 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,511 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $73,542,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BKNG. Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Booking in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC acquired a new position in Booking during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Camelot Portfolios LLC acquired a new position in Booking during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. purchased a new stake in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $186.79 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $144.74 billion, a PE ratio of 24.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $172.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.43. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $150.14 and a 12 month high of $231.80.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $5.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.52 billion. Booking had a net margin of 22.23% and a negative return on equity of 117.14%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.99 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.45 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on BKNG. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Booking from $259.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. HSBC lowered their target price on Booking from $309.84 to $298.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $250.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Friday, May 29th. B. Riley Financial cut their price target on Booking from $272.00 to $264.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wedbush initiated coverage on Booking in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $211.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Booking has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $227.05.

Insider Activity at Booking

In related news, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total value of $10,229,375.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,572,025.25. This represents a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Booking Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel company that operates a portfolio of consumer brands and technology platforms that facilitate the search for and booking of travel services. The company’s businesses focus on accommodations, transportation and related travel services through consumer-facing websites and apps as well as partner distribution channels. Booking Holdings was originally founded as Priceline in the late 1990s and adopted the Booking Holdings name in 2018; it is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Its core offerings include online reservations for hotels, vacation rentals and other lodging; flight and car rental search and booking; and ancillary services that support travel planning and on-property experiences.