Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG), formerly Priceline, is back on track with a fourth-quarter earnings beat.

The Analyst

Credit Suisse's Paul Bieber maintains an Outperform rating on Booking Holdings and raised the price target from $2,260 to $2,300.

The Thesis

Booking Holdings turned in a "very strong" Q4 that saw 20-percent EPS upside and better-than-expected room night growth of 17 percent year-over-year.

“Given high-teens room night growth and performance marketing efficiencies, Q4 results should dispel concerns [about] structural issues in online travel,” Bieber said. 

Priceline’s brand is well-known in the US, but Booking.com has more recognition globally.

A strong return on investment from meta and search advertising, as well as direct bookings, drove the earnings upside, Bieber said. 

“Commentary on a test-and-learn approach to TV advertising was also positive in our view, given concerns about a step function increase in TV advertising mix over the coming years." 

“I don’t see that one company coming in and saying they’re going to offer a small number of select hotel type properties as a big issue,” Fogel said. “We’ve been facing competition of all sorts for a long time.”

Price Action

Shares were relatively flat on Wednesday, at last check trading down 0.07 percent at $1,905.64. 

Related Links:

MKM Partners: Priceline Has Strong Fundamentals, But Wait For Bookings Growth, Better PE Ratio

Morgan Stanley Debunks 3 Bear Myths Haunting The Online Travel Space