Shares of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: BKNG) rose more than 2% in intra-day trading on Monday after Truist Securities upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy and raised its price target to $5,750 from $5,630, citing strong growth prospects and improving valuation.
The firm said in its note that several near- and long-term growth drivers support the upgrade, including robust travel demand across Asia and resilient global economic trends. Truist pointed to expectations of 7–9% compound annual growth in air passenger traffic across South and Southeast Asia over the next two decades, with Booking’s exposure to the region now at roughly 25%, up from 20% pre-pandemic.
The analysts also noted that global GDP growth projections of around 3% for 2025–2027 — slightly higher in Asia — are likely to support sustained travel demand. They added that concerns over potential AI-driven disruption to online travel agencies appeared overstated in the near term.
Truist said Booking’s valuation looks more compelling, with the stock trading at about 20x consensus 2026 earnings and roughly 16x 2026 EBITDA estimates.
