QRG Capital Management Inc. Acquires 124 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 16.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 868 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 124 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Booking were worth $4,313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new position in Booking during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Booking during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in Booking by 600.0% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 7 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 6 shares during the period. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its position in Booking by 80.0% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 9 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. raised its position in shares of Booking by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 10 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of Booking stock opened at $5,016.01 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $164.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.39. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $3,180.00 and a 52-week high of $5,337.24. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $4,898.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4,607.88.

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

Booking Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $9.60 per share. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is 22.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on Booking in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $5,850.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,900.00 to $5,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Booking from $5,100.00 to $5,600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,560.00 to $5,960.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Benchmark raised their target price on Booking from $5,000.00 to $5,900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.