Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Given New $4,698.00 Price Target at Sanford C. Bernstein

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) had its price target lowered by Sanford C. Bernstein from $5,407.00 to $4,698.00 in a research report released on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. Sanford C. Bernstein currently has a market perform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Booking in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Robert W. Baird set a $5,850.00 price objective on Booking in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Susquehanna set a $6,500.00 target price on Booking in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Benchmark reduced their price target on Booking from $6,400.00 to $5,600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Twenty-nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Booking presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5,845.61.

Booking Trading Down 1.1%

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $4,322.42 on Wednesday. Booking has a 12-month low of $3,765.45 and a 12-month high of $5,839.41. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $4,710.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5,067.65. The firm has a market cap of $136.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.02, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.21.

Booking’s stock is set to split on Monday, April 6th. The 25-1 split was announced on Wednesday, February 18th. The newly created shares will be issued to shareholders after the market closes on Thursday, April 2nd.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $48.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $47.96 by $0.84. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.12 billion. Booking had a net margin of 20.08% and a negative return on equity of 128.99%. Booking’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $41.55 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Booking will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $10.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This is an increase from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $9.60. This represents a $42.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 953 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5,181.34, for a total transaction of $4,937,817.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 19,615 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,631,984.10. This trade represents a 4.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 40 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,105.36, for a total value of $204,214.40. Following the sale, the director directly owned 840 shares in the company, valued at $4,288,502.40. This trade represents a 4.55% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 3,108 shares of company stock valued at $15,287,682. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Booking

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter valued at $273,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Booking by 14.1% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 27,345 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $146,450,000 after buying an additional 3,378 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in Booking by 54.2% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 135,596 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $727,706,000 after acquiring an additional 47,684 shares during the last quarter. Taylor Securities Services Inc. purchased a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at about $214,000. Finally, Pure Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Booking by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 183 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $982,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Booking

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Elevated market attention and “trending” coverage can draw retail and momentum flows that support liquidity and demand. Recent write-ups on Zacks and Yahoo highlight BKNG as widely watched, which may help stabilize or attract buyers. Here is What to Know Beyond Why Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) is a Trending Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Company fundamentals remain supportive: Booking beat on revenue and EPS in its most recent quarter and has a scheduled 25-for-1 stock split in early April — both items that can attract retail interest and improve accessibility to smaller investors. (Background: Q4 revenue and EPS beat; split announced Feb. 18.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest notices in recent feeds show anomalous zero/NaN values and no meaningful days-to-cover signal — the reported data appears unreliable and does not provide clear downward pressure evidence. Monitor confirmed short-interest filings for a real signal before assuming large short activity.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst pressure: Sanford C. Bernstein cut its price target to $4,698 from $5,407 and kept a “market perform” rating, narrowing upside and signaling more cautious near-term expectations. That PT cut increases selling pressure. Bernstein adjusts PT on Booking Holdings
• Negative Sentiment: Relative underperformance: MarketWatch notes BKNG underperformed peers today, which can amplify outflows as sector rotation or profit-taking favors better-performing travel/online names. Booking Holdings Inc. stock underperforms Wednesday
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term price weakness flagged by market commentary: Zacks highlighted that BKNG’s decline outpaced the broader market today, reinforcing the view that sentiment is more negative than for peers. Booking Holdings Sees a More Significant Dip Than Broader Market

About Booking

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.