Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus on Booking Holdings, with 27 buy ratings, nine holds and one strong-buy rating among 37 analysts. The average 12-month price target is approximately $227.23.
• Booking’s latest quarter exceeded expectations, reporting $1.14 in EPS versus a $1.08 consensus estimate and $5.53 billion in revenue, up 16.2% year over year.
• The upcoming second-quarter results could bring near-term volatility, as analysts weigh slower expected growth, geopolitical and travel disruptions, and whether the company’s Connected Trip and AI initiatives can support demand.

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the thirty-seven ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $227.2271.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson decreased their target price on shares of Booking from $240.00 to $230.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. HSBC cut their price objective on Booking from $309.84 to $298.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Booking from $249.00 to $266.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Booking from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Booking from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th.

Booking Price Performance

NASDAQ BKNG opened at $193.24 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $175.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $177.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $149.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.07. Booking has a 52-week low of $150.14 and a 52-week high of $231.80.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.52 billion. Booking had a net margin of 22.23% and a negative return on equity of 117.14%. The firm's revenue was up 16.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Booking will post 10.42 EPS for the current year.

Booking News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS raised its price target for Booking Holdings from $249 to $266 and reiterated a “Buy” rating, implying substantial upside from recent levels. Benzinga analyst update
• Positive Sentiment: Booking’s latest reported quarter showed resilient fundamentals: earnings per share exceeded estimates, revenue reached $5.53 billion, and revenue increased 16.2% year over year. Investors may view this performance as a supportive baseline for the upcoming results.
• Neutral Sentiment: Booking is preparing to report second-quarter earnings for the period ended June 2026. Analysts are focused on room nights, gross bookings, revenue, adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow, while the market looks for evidence that the company’s Connected Trip and artificial-intelligence initiatives are translating into growth. Booking Holdings Q2 key metrics preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Director Robert J. Mylod Jr. sold 5,000 shares for approximately $1 million, while Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 1,125 shares for $216,000. Both transactions were conducted under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, limiting their significance as signals about management’s current view of the stock. Robert Mylod SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts expect slower second-quarter growth as geopolitical and travel disruptions weigh on demand. The earnings preview also suggests that gains from the Connected Trip and AI initiatives may not fully offset a more challenging operating environment. Booking Holdings Q2 earnings outlook
• Negative Sentiment: The upcoming earnings event creates near-term uncertainty because investors will be looking for a beat and constructive guidance after the recent share-price weakness. Any disappointment in bookings, margins or the outlook could increase volatility.

Insider Activity at Booking

In other Booking news, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $1,000,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,200,000. The trade was a 23.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Peter J. Millones sold 62,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.67, for a total transaction of $10,229,375.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 425,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,572,025.25. This trade represents a 12.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 68,625 shares of company stock valued at $11,445,375. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Booking

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $361,463,000. Rit Capital Partners PLC bought a new position in Booking in the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,396,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new position in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter worth approximately $210,352,000. Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 862.0% during the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 218,080 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,167,890,000 after buying an additional 195,411 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Booking by 36.7% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 56,087 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $300,364,000 after acquiring an additional 15,053 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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