Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. Sells 206 Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. reduced its position in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,204 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 206 shares during the period. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Booking were worth $45,729,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Garner Asset Management Corp increased its stake in Booking by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 258 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,087,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC increased its stake in Booking by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 91 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $383,000 after purchasing an additional 2 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its stake in Booking by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 662 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,788,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Booking by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 241 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $989,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC increased its stake in Booking by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 160 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $674,000 after purchasing an additional 3 shares in the last quarter. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson raised their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,575.00 to $5,750.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Booking from $5,400.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Robert W. Baird assumed coverage on shares of Booking in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $5,850.00 price target for the company. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Booking to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Booking presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $5,370.43.

Booking Price Performance

Booking stock opened at $4,465.48 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $146.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.81, a PEG 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. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $4,816.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $4,682.53.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $35.82 by $5.73. The firm had revenue of $5.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.18 billion. Booking had a net margin of 24.78% and a negative return on equity of 159.34%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Booking Holdings Inc. will post 209.92 EPS for the current year.

Booking Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $9.60 dividend. This represents a $38.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a boost from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. Booking’s payout ratio is currently 22.19%.

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.