Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec Makes New Investment in Booking Holdings Inc. $BKNG

Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec acquired a new stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,289,582 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $229,855,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG bought a new position in Booking in the 2nd quarter worth about $11,687,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC boosted its stake in shares of Booking by 2,860.8% in the 2nd quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 12,554 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,238,000 after buying an additional 12,130 shares during the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter valued at about $361,463,000. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in Booking by 1,663.9% in the second quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 28,698 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,115,000 after acquiring an additional 27,071 shares during the period. Finally, Rit Capital Partners PLC bought a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter worth $51,396,000. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on BKNG shares. Benchmark upped their target price on shares of Booking from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $240.00 price target (up from $215.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and issued a $236.00 target price (up from $225.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. HSBC lowered their price objective on shares of Booking from $309.84 to $298.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Booking from $266.00 to $274.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $236.45.

Booking Stock Down 2.3%

BKNG opened at $208.89 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $156.96 billion, a PE ratio of 23.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $190.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $177.38. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $150.14 and a twelve month high of $227.72.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The business services provider reported $2.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.43 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $7.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.19 billion. Booking had a net margin of 25.53% and a negative return on equity of 102.96%. The business’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $55.40 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 10.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Booking Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Booking news, CFO Ewout L. Steenbergen sold 20,000 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.03, for a total transaction of $4,220,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,618,327.82. The trade was a 25.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 50,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.59, for a total transaction of $10,389,879.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 375,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $77,851,439.75. The trade was a 11.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 77,550 shares of company stock worth $16,112,304 over the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Trending Headlines about Booking

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts currently assign Booking Holdings an average “Moderate Buy” rating, indicating that Wall Street remains broadly optimistic about the company’s outlook. Booking Holdings Given Average Rating of Moderate Buy by Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: OpenTable, a Booking Holdings business, introduced more than 20 restaurant-focused product enhancements, including AI-powered search distribution, automation tools, and natural-language reporting. The rollout could strengthen OpenTable’s value proposition, improve restaurant engagement, and support longer-term growth in the company’s restaurant technology operations. OpenTable Launches New Product Features
• Neutral Sentiment: Chief Financial Officer Ewout Steenbergen will speak at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference on September 9. The presentation could provide updated commentary on travel demand, margins, and strategy, but no new financial guidance was announced. Booking Holdings Goldman Sachs Conference Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Glenn Fogel is scheduled to participate in a Citi Global TMT Conference session on September 8. The event may offer investors additional strategic insight, but the announcement itself has no immediate earnings impact. Booking Holdings Citi Conference Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: A report discusses whether Wall Street is bullish or bearish on BKNG, highlighting the importance of analyst expectations and valuation in current trading. The headline alone does not establish a specific change in consensus. Booking Holdings Stock: Is Wall Street Bullish or Bearish?
• Negative Sentiment: Booking’s recent pullback may indicate investor caution after a substantial advance, particularly as valuation and the sustainability of travel-demand growth remain key considerations. The reported short-interest data showed zero shares and therefore provides no meaningful evidence of bearish short positioning.

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.