- The Booking.com Super Bowl ad featuring the Muppets was the most watched of them all.
- Booking stock was rising, up 1% on Monday.
- Is Booking stock a buy?
It got more views on YouTube than any other Super Bowl ad.
For a good portion of the Super Bowl audience, the ads are a bigger draw than the game itself.
The most-watched television event on the U.S. calendar is a prime opportunity for companies to get in front of consumers and make an impression. So, a lot of money is spent, not only to get a slot during the game, but on the ads themselves to create the most buzz for a brand.
While there were a lot of memorable ads, the winner appears to be Booking.com, a travel website owned by Booking Holdings (NASDAQ:BKNG). Its ad featuring Jim Henson’s Muppets had the most views on YouTube during and after the Super Bowl, according to various sources, including Variety and Brand Innovators.
That’s the type of buzz that companies want to create around their ads. But did the exposure move the needle for Booking’s stock price?
Booking Stock Trading Higher on Monday
Booking stock was trading higher on Monday, up about 2% after the opening bell and then settling back down as the day wore on. By 2:00 p.m. ET, the stock was up around 1% to $4,928 per share.
So, while the ad, the views, and the positive press around it may have provided a small lift for the stock, it was nothing major.
But Booking stock has been on a nice run over the past six months, climbing about 43%, and analysts are more bullish on its prospects.
Last week, Booking stock got a big price target upgrade from UBS to $5,560 per share. That would be a 12% increase over its current price. UBS calls Booking its top pick in the travel stock space and expects a strong Q$ earnings report. Also, Booking should benefit from what is expected to be a good year for travel to Europe, given the relative strength of the dollar.
Booking stock has a median price target of $5,230 among the 40 analysts that cover it, which would represent about a 6% gain. Most analysts consider it a buy.
Strong Quarter for Expedia Raises Expectations
Booking is due to report its fourth-quarter earnings next week on February 20. Investors may have been able to glean some insight into its prospects from the Q4 earnings reported by Booking rival Expedia (NASDAQ:EXPE) last Friday, February 7. Expedia stock skyrocketed some 18% to $204 per share after its Q4 earnings release.
Expedia beat estimates with a strong Q4 that saw room nights booked jump 12%, gross bookings surge 13%, and revenue rise 10%, year over year. Further, net income jumped 124% to $299 million, or $2.32 per share, while adjusted earnings were 30% higher.
The strong holiday travel season for Expedia bodes well for Booking when it reports earnings on February 20.
While it has an astronomical entry price of $4.928 per share, Booking stock has a decent valuation, trading at 33 times earnings and 23 times forward earnings. Booking is also a major candidate for a stock split. It has never had a stock split, as the high price might indicate, so perhaps one might be coming.
Booking stock has been a stellar performer over the years with a 10-year average annualized return of 17%. The Super Bowl ad aside, it has some nice momentum heading into 2025, and might be a stock to consider leading up to the February 20 earnings release.