Level Four Advisory Services LLC Increases Stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,345 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Booking were worth $11,656,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its holdings in Booking by 13.0% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 208 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $876,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Booking by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 413 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,738,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. CreativeOne Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Booking in the 3rd quarter valued at about $666,000. MayTech Global Investments LLC raised its stake in Booking by 20.6% during the third quarter. MayTech Global Investments LLC now owns 5,773 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $24,318,000 after purchasing an additional 988 shares during the period. Finally, Fiduciary Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 1,482 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,244,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ BKNG opened at $4,752.80 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $3,180.00 and a 1-year high of $5,337.24. The company has a market capitalization of $155.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.47, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a 50-day moving average of $4,784.95 and a 200-day moving average of $4,721.67.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Booking had a negative return on equity of 159.34% and a net margin of 24.78%. The business had revenue of $5.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.18 billion. Research analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. 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 Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $9.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. This is a positive change from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. Booking’s payout ratio is 22.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on BKNG shares. Erste Group Bank downgraded Booking from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Booking from $5,500.00 to $5,800.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,155.00 to $5,900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,000.00 to $5,900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,000.00 to $5,500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus 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.