Citigroup Cuts Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) Price Target to $6,250.00

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) had its target price cut by Citigroup from $6,500.00 to $6,250.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have a buy rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on BKNG. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $6,250.00 to $6,400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Booking from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 4th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $6,250.00 price target on shares of Booking in a report on Thursday. Barclays set a $5,500.00 price objective on Booking and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Booking from $6,250.00 to $5,600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Twenty-eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $5,971.64.

Booking Stock Performance

Shares of BKNG opened at $4,076.79 on Thursday. Booking has a 52 week low of $3,871.01 and a 52 week high of $5,839.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $129.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.54, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $5,007.56 and a 200-day moving average of $5,181.61.

Booking’s stock is set to split on Monday, April 6th. The 25-1 split was announced on Wednesday, February 18th. The newly created shares will be issued to shareholders after the closing bell on Thursday, April 2nd.

Booking (NASDAQ:BKNG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $48.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $47.96 by $0.84. Booking had a negative return on equity of 128.99% and a net margin of 20.08%.The business had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $41.55 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Booking will post 209.92 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Vanessa Ames Wittman sold 15 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,191.15, for a total transaction of $77,867.25. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,566,320.05. This trade represents a 2.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Robert J. Mylod, Jr. sold 40 shares of Booking stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $5,105.36, for a total value of $204,214.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,288,502.40. The trade was a 4.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,108 shares of company stock worth $15,287,682. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Booking

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of BKNG. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Booking by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 6,914 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,132,000 after buying an additional 492 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its holdings in Booking by 15.6% during the second quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 511 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,958,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC grew its position in Booking by 59.6% during the third quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 1,119 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,042,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Booking by 67.3% in the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 30,210 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $174,893,000 after purchasing an additional 12,148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GRIMES & Co WEALTH MANAGEMENT LLC increased its position in shares of Booking by 339.0% in the third quarter. GRIMES & Co WEALTH MANAGEMENT LLC now owns 180 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $974,000 after buying an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.42% of the company’s stock.

Booking News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Booking this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat: BKNG reported Q4 revenue of $6.35B (+16% y/y) and EPS of $48.80, with room nights +9% and gross bookings +16% — strong operating metrics that underpin the stock’s upside. Q4 earnings highlights
• Positive Sentiment: 25-for-1 stock split: management announced a 25-to-1 split effective early April, which increases retail accessibility/liquidity and often supports demand from individual investors. MarketBeat BKNG page (split)
• Positive Sentiment: AI as a productivity lever: management highlighted generative-AI initiatives to improve personalization and conversion, which could be a medium-term margin tailwind if execution scales. Generative AI coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Forward tone: company gave constructive revenue growth guidance for the quarter (revenue growth range above some Street estimates), though currency-adjusted growth and margin cadence bear watching. Guidance & metrics comparison
• Neutral Sentiment: Documentation released: earnings transcript, slide deck and call replay are available for investors who want to dig into unit economics and regional trends. Earnings call transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst price-target cuts: multiple firms trimmed targets (examples include Susquehanna, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo and others), which pressured sentiment and contributed to recent near-term weakness. Benzinga: price-target cuts / 52-week low
• Negative Sentiment: AI disintermediation fears & insider selling: investors remain concerned that big‑tech AI agents could bypass OTAs and that higher marketing spend may compress near-term margins; CEO share sales in February add a modest negative optics element. Deep dive on AI/marketing impact Read More.

Booking Company Profile

Booking Holdings Inc is a global online travel company that operates a portfolio of consumer brands and technology platforms that facilitate the search for and booking of travel services. The company’s businesses focus on accommodations, transportation and related travel services through consumer-facing websites and apps as well as partner distribution channels. Booking Holdings was originally founded as Priceline in the late 1990s and adopted the Booking Holdings name in 2018; it is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Its core offerings include online reservations for hotels, vacation rentals and other lodging; flight and car rental search and booking; and ancillary services that support travel planning and on-property experiences.