Axa S.A. Grows Stock Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

AXA S.A. increased its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Free Report) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,164 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,535 shares during the quarter. AXA S.A. owned about 0.11% of Booking worth $179,678,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BKNG. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in Booking by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 31 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $158,000 after buying an additional 2 shares during the period. SageView Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 124 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $616,000 after buying an additional 2 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Booking by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 95 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Booking by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 46 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $229,000 after acquiring an additional 3 shares during the period. Finally, Marcum Wealth LLC increased its stake in Booking by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $443,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Booking Trading Up 0.6 %

BKNG traded up $30.22 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $5,192.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 157,390 shares, compared to its average volume of 249,551. The firm has a market cap of $168.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.01, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.42. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $3,180.00 and a 52-week high of $5,337.24. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $4,660.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $4,833.19.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $24.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $17.57 by $7.24. The company had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 159.34% and a net margin of 24.78%. The firm's revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $20.39 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current year.

Booking Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $9.60 dividend. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. Booking's payout ratio is currently 23.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Booking from $5,550.00 to $5,700.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on Booking from $5,540.00 to $4,330.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Cfra raised Booking from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $5,900.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Booking from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $5,262.41.

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.