Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) Position Boosted by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,739 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 296 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Booking were worth $23,545,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in BKNG. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new stake in shares of Booking during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 600.0% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 7 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 80.0% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 9 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Booking by 66.7% during the third quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 10 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Booking Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:BKNG opened at $5,049.08 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $4,901.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4,580.38. Booking Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $3,180.00 and a one year high of $5,337.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $165.66 billion, a PE ratio of 29.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.39.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Booking from $5,500.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Booking from $3,940.00 to $4,510.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group raised their price target on Booking from $5,560.00 to $5,960.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Bank of America lifted their target price on Booking from $4,850.00 to $5,522.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Booking from $5,100.00 to $5,600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $5,370.43.

Booking 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.