Premier Fund Managers Ltd Invests $10.29 Million in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Premier Fund Managers Ltd acquired a new stake in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 2,060 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $10,288,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth about $343,000. X Square Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Booking by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. X Square Capital LLC now owns 386 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,919,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Booking during the fourth quarter worth approximately $11,010,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Booking during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,958,352,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL raised its position in shares of Booking by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 2,749 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,661,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BKNG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,575.00 to $5,750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Wedbush raised their price target on Booking from $5,000.00 to $5,500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Booking from $5,155.00 to $5,900.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com raised Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, B. Riley increased their price objective on Booking from $5,700.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5,370.43.

Booking Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $4,752.80 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $155.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $4,784.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4,721.67. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $3,180.00 and a 52-week high of $5,337.24.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The business services provider reported $41.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $35.82 by $5.73. The business had revenue of $5.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.18 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 159.34% and a net margin of 24.78%. On average, equities analysts predict that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $9.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.