Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Boosts Position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI grew its position in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,928 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Booking were worth $9,579,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BKNG. Burt Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in Booking in the 4th quarter valued at about $229,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 214,185 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,064,161,000 after purchasing an additional 4,258 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Booking by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 451 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,241,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP increased its stake in shares of Booking by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 219 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,087,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Booking by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $775,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of BKNG opened at $4,946.15 on Tuesday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $3,180.00 and a 12 month high of $5,337.24. The stock has a market cap of $162.31 billion, a PE ratio of 28.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.39. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $4,896.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4,631.73.

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

Booking Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $9.60 per share. This is an increase from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.78%. Booking’s payout ratio is 22.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on BKNG shares. Tigress Financial increased their target price on Booking from $4,580.00 to $5,600.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Robert W. Baird started coverage on Booking in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $5,850.00 price objective on the stock. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Booking from $5,005.00 to $5,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $4,850.00 to $5,522.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $5,370.43.

About Booking

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.