BMO Capital Markets Lowers Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Price Target to $240.00

Key Points

• BMO Capital Markets cut its price target on Booking to $240 (from $248) and kept an "outperform" rating, implying roughly a 41.5% upside from the prior close.
• Several other brokers have trimmed targets, leaving a MarketBeat consensus of a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $226.64.
• Booking's Q1 revenue slightly beat expectations but management trimmed full‑year revenue growth guidance citing the Middle East conflict, and insiders have been net sellers recently (CEO sold 16,726 shares; ~60,876 shares sold by insiders in the last 90 days).

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) had its price target lowered by BMO Capital Markets from $248.00 to $240.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the business services provider's stock. BMO Capital Markets' price objective indicates a potential upside of 41.54% from the company's previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on BKNG. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price objective on Booking from $244.00 to $240.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Citigroup cut their target price on Booking from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Tigress Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $260.00 target price (up from $244.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Booking from $234.00 to $215.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, HSBC cut their price objective on shares of Booking from $309.84 to $298.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $226.64.

Booking Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of BKNG stock opened at $169.56 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $134.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.52, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.20. Booking has a 52-week low of $150.62 and a 52-week high of $233.58. The company's 50 day moving average is $173.66 and its 200 day moving average is $192.32.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $27.56 by ($26.42). The company had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.51 billion. Booking had a negative return on equity of 128.99% and a net margin of 20.08%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.99 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Booking will post 10.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.21, for a total transaction of $204,214.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 21,000 shares in the company, valued at $4,288,502.40. This represents a 4.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 16,726 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.36, for a total transaction of $3,100,331.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 298,174 shares of the company's stock, valued at $55,269,532.64. The trade was a 5.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 60,876 shares of company stock valued at $10,559,629. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Guerra Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Booking during the third quarter worth $27,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Daytona Street Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Legacy Bridge LLC acquired a new position in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Camelot Portfolios LLC purchased a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Booking

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results beat consensus on revenue and EPS, management highlighted strong gross bookings, record repurchases and margin resilience — supporting upside if travel demand normalizes. Q1 Beats
• Positive Sentiment: Booking is rolling out and monetizing AI (KAYAK’s Ask AI; company comments that AI assistants cut costs and boost bookings), which can expand margins and reduce distribution risk over time. KAYAK Ask AI AI Assistants
• Positive Sentiment: Independent valuation write‑ups highlight a large indicated intrinsic discount (~44%), which can attract value buyers and support a longer‑term recovery narrative. Valuation Analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusual options flow: very large volumes of both calls (80,909) and elevated put buying — points to positioning and short‑term speculation rather than a clear directional signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Management cut its full‑year revenue growth outlook (now high‑single‑digit vs prior low‑double‑digit) citing the Middle East conflict — a key driver of the intra‑day selloff as guidance, not just results, matters. Guidance Cut
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple brokers trimmed price targets (Goldman, Citi, Deutsche Bank, RBC, Mizuho, DA Davidson, HSBC and others lowered PTs or revised models), increasing short‑term selling pressure even where ratings were maintained. Analyst Target Moves
• Negative Sentiment: Notable hedge‑fund/manager activity and insider trends: Lone Pine/Stephen Mandel trimmed a position and Quiver/others show heavy insider sales — signals some institutional profit‑taking after recent gains. Manager Trims Insider/Quiver Data

About Booking

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel company that operates a portfolio of consumer brands and technology platforms that facilitate the search for and booking of travel services. The company's businesses focus on accommodations, transportation and related travel services through consumer-facing websites and apps as well as partner distribution channels. Booking Holdings was originally founded as Priceline in the late 1990s and adopted the Booking Holdings name in 2018; it is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Its core offerings include online reservations for hotels, vacation rentals and other lodging; flight and car rental search and booking; and ancillary services that support travel planning and on-property experiences.

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