Katamaran Capital LLP Makes New Investment in Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG)

Katamaran Capital LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 470 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,335,000. Booking accounts for 3.0% of Katamaran Capital LLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc purchased a new stake in Booking during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Booking during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Booking in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Promus Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Booking in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Booking by 600.0% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 7 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares during the period. 92.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Booking Stock Performance

NASDAQ BKNG opened at $4,284.02 on Friday. Booking Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $3,180.00 and a one year high of $5,337.24. The company has a market cap of $140.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $4,757.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $4,750.17.

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

Booking Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $9.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Booking’s previous quarterly dividend of $8.75. This represents a $38.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. Booking’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKNG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of Booking from $5,500.00 to $6,000.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Booking from $4,850.00 to $5,522.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Booking from $5,005.00 to $5,800.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. UBS Group lifted their target price on Booking from $5,560.00 to $5,960.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Erste Group Bank cut shares of Booking from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $5,374.90.

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.