Booking’s (BKNG) Long-Term Growth Outlook Drives Upgrade from Morgan Stanley

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) is included among the 13 Most Promising Long-Term Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds.

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On February 24, Morgan Stanley expert Brian Nowak upgraded Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) to Overweight from Equal Weight. He acceptable a terms people of $5,500, down from $6,150. In his probe note, Nowak said that adjacent arsenic agentic tools evolve, Booking is apt to stay “a cardinal operator of travel.” He added that the institution is well-positioned to “own the customer,” stitchery “robust” traveler data, and usage that accusation to enactment high-margin nonstop bookings. The steadfast noted that aboriginal agentic question products are processing otherwise than expected. Even so, Morgan Stanley believes Booking and different online question agencies volition stay cardinal to the question ecosystem. The expert said these platforms are apt to beryllium “just arsenic important successful the agentic satellite arsenic they person been successful the past 2 decades.”

During the company’s Q4 2025 net call, President and CEO Glenn Fogel said Booking delivered different twelvemonth of beardown operational performance. He acknowledged volatility successful planetary markets but said the company’s halfway fundamentals remained solid. Travel request stayed resilient, supported by the standard and scope of its planetary platform. Fogel besides highlighted advancement successful expanding AI-driven capabilities. He said the institution continues to execute connected its Connected Trip strategy, portion maintaining absorption connected maturation successful cardinal regions specified arsenic Asia and the U.S.

In the 4th quarter, country nights reached 285 million. This marked a 9% summation compared with the anterior twelvemonth and came successful supra the company’s expectations. Strong request crossed large regions helped thrust gross bookings and gross up 16%. Adjusted EBITDA accrued 19% to $2.2 billion, portion adjusted net per stock roseate 17%.

Fogel besides discussed the company’s Transformation Program, which began successful November 2024. He said the inaugural has already delivered astir $550 cardinal successful yearly outgo savings. This effect reached the precocious extremity of the company’s earlier targets.

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) provides online question and edifice preservation services. The institution operates done 5 large brands: Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, and OpenTable.

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