Pitcairn Co. Boosts Holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Pitcairn Co. increased its holdings in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 10.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,703 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Pitcairn Co.’s holdings in Booking were worth $8,461,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in Booking during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Stock Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $4,689.30 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $4,774.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4,750.13. The stock has a market cap of $153.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.10, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.40. Booking Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $3,180.00 and a twelve month high of $5,337.24.

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

Booking Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $9.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. This is a boost from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. Booking’s payout ratio is currently 22.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BKNG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $5,120.00 price target (up previously from $4,900.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Barclays increased their target price on Booking from $5,100.00 to $5,600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on Booking from $4,900.00 to $5,540.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,575.00 to $5,750.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,250.00 to $5,900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Booking 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.