iA Global Asset Management Inc. Sells 522 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

iA Global Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,362 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 522 shares during the quarter. Booking comprises about 1.0% of iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Booking were worth $56,451,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Garner Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 258 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,087,000 after buying an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 91 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $383,000 after buying an additional 2 shares during the last quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 241 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $989,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $674,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its stake in shares of Booking by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 662 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,788,000 after buying an additional 3 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking Price Performance

BKNG stock opened at $4,591.89 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $4,797.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $4,690.53. The stock has a market cap of $150.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.40. Booking Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $3,180.00 and a 1 year high of $5,337.24.

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

Booking Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $9.60 dividend. This is a boost from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Booking’s dividend payout ratio is 22.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on BKNG shares. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $5,400.00 target price on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,470.00 to $5,248.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Booking from $4,850.00 to $5,522.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Piper Sandler reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $5,120.00 price objective (up previously from $4,900.00) on shares of Booking in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Booking 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.