Susquehanna Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Stock

Key Points

• Susquehanna analysts increased their price target for Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) from $6,000 to $6,500, indicating a potential upside of 19.62% from its previous close.
• Booking's recent earnings report showed a significant growth, with $55.40 earnings per share, exceeding analyst estimates and reflecting a 16.0% increase in quarterly revenue year-over-year.
• Insider trading reports indicate that CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold over 1,000 shares of Booking stock, indicating a 3.66% decrease in his ownership position.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) had its price target hoisted by investment analysts at Susquehanna from $6,000.00 to $6,500.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "positive" rating on the business services provider's stock. Susquehanna's target price indicates a potential upside of 19.62% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the company. JMP Securities raised their target price on Booking from $5,600.00 to $5,700.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Bank of America raised their target price on Booking from $5,820.00 to $5,850.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating and issued a $6,700.00 target price (up from $6,100.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $6,000.00 price target (up previously from $5,700.00) on shares of Booking in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Booking from $5,560.00 to $6,500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued 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 $5,781.04.

Booking Price Performance

Booking stock opened at $5,433.97 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $5,567.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5,070.33. Booking has a 52-week low of $3,180.00 and a 52-week high of $5,839.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $176.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.40.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $55.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $50.32 by $5.08. Booking had a negative return on equity of 134.19% and a net margin of 19.23%. The company had revenue of $6.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.54 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $41.90 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Booking will post 209.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Booking

In other news, CEO Glenn D. Fogel sold 1,013 shares of Booking stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,695.00, for a total transaction of $5,769,035.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 26,633 shares in the company, valued at $151,674,935. The trade was a 3.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 3,039 shares of company stock worth $16,963,769. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Booking

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Booking during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new stake in Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC bought a new stake in Booking in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, O Brien Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Booking in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 92.42% of the company's stock.

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.

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