Advertisement
Singapore markets closed
  • Straits Times Index

    3,224.01
    -27.70 (-0.85%)
     
  • S&P 500

    5,252.96
    +4.47 (+0.09%)
     
  • Dow

    39,745.34
    -14.74 (-0.04%)
     
  • Nasdaq

    16,401.98
    +2.46 (+0.02%)
     
  • Bitcoin USD

    71,420.88
    +1,602.70 (+2.30%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • FTSE 100

    7,972.82
    +40.84 (+0.51%)
     
  • Gold

    2,234.30
    +21.60 (+0.98%)
     
  • Crude Oil

    82.59
    +1.24 (+1.52%)
     
  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.1980
    +0.0020 (+0.05%)
     
  • Nikkei

    40,168.07
    -594.66 (-1.46%)
     
  • Hang Seng

    16,541.42
    +148.58 (+0.91%)
     
  • FTSE Bursa Malaysia

    1,530.60
    -7.82 (-0.51%)
     
  • Jakarta Composite Index

    7,288.81
    -21.28 (-0.29%)
     
  • PSE Index

    6,903.53
    +5.36 (+0.08%)
     

Booking Holdings (BKNG) to Expand Traveler Base Via New Tie-Up (Revised)

Booking Holdings’ BKNG brand Agoda expanded its partnership with Ant Group’s digital payment services provider, Alipay+.

On the back of this collaboration, Agoda can use Alipay+ marketing solutions, including Alipay+ Rewards and in-cashier marketing services as discounts and redemption to boost transaction conversion rate on its platform.

The discount and redemption services are currently available for travelers in Hong Kong SAR of China, the Philippines, and Thailand.

The latest move is expected to help BKNG gain momentum among travelers visiting the abovementioned regions. This, in turn, will generate more bookings and drive the top line.

This will aid BKNG in gaining investors’ confidence in the near and the long term.

Shares of Booking Holdings have been down 15.6% in the year-to-date period against the Zacks Retail-Wholesale sector’s decline of 18.6%.

Booking Holdings Inc. Price and Consensus

Booking Holdings Inc. Price and Consensus
Booking Holdings Inc. Price and Consensus

Booking Holdings Inc. price-consensus-chart | Booking Holdings Inc. Quote

Growing Agoda Initiatives to Boost Prospects

Agoda has so far incorporated several digital wallets, namely the AlipayHK, GCash and TrueMoney through Alipay+. The recent move further strengthened their partnership.

Booking Holdings’ Agoda is consistently making global efforts to attract travelers worldwide.

Apart from the recent tie-up, Agoda recently partnered with the World Wide Fund for Nature (Singapore). Per the terms, Agoda and its accommodation partners will offer deals to travelers interested in giving back to support marine habitat restoration efforts. This partnership is part of Agoda’s new Eco Deals program.

In May, Booking Holdings’ Agoda signed a multi-year agreement with The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy of Indonesia. On the back of this alliance, Agoda will promote the “Wonderful Indonesia” brand to stimulate tourism in the country.

Agoda further collaborated with Visa in May to provide credit card installments across its booking platform without any interest charges. With the help of this partnership, BKNG aims to gain momentum among eligible Visa card-holding travelers in the Asia Pacific region.   

Agoda’s growing initiatives will continue to help Booking Holdings expand its presence in the online travel booking market, thereby strengthening its position in the travel industry.

Per a Technavio report, the online travel booking platform market is likely to hit $943.6 billion by 2026, seeing a CAGR of 14.6% during the 2022-2026 forecast period.

Competitive Travel Market

Given the solid prospects in the travel industry, Booking Holdings’ competitors, including TripAdvisor TRIP, Expedia EXPE and Airbnb ABNB, are also positioning themselves well to capitalize on the improving travel potential.

TripAdvisor is riding on its Tripadvisor Plus subscription offerings. Additionally, its growing partnerships remain positive. In March, TRIP collaborated with Walgreens to promote the latter’s COVID-19 testing solutions so that travelers who are symptomatic, unvaccinated or planning to engage in a mixed group of vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals, can enjoy safe trips.

Expedia is gaining traction among customers owing to its robust portfolio offerings. Moreover, its website provides travelers with destination and flight plan choices, details of the places to be visited, maps, local restaurants, things to do, cruises, special offers and consumer reviews, so that they can book according to their preferences.

Airbnb’s growing technological efforts to attract more hosts and guests to its platform remain noteworthy. This apart, Airbnb recently joined forces with Visit Bloomington to promote safe travel with a focus on local attractions, unique stays and experiences to boost travel demand in Bloomington. The partnership is also focused on supporting local shops, restaurants and workers of the city who depend on the local tourism industry.

Nevertheless, the latest collaboration of Agoda with Ant Group is expected to boost BKNG’s competitive prowess against the abovementioned peers. Currently, Booking Holdings carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

(We are reissuing this article to correct a mistake. The original article, issued on August 09, 2022, should no longer be relied upon.)


Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
Expedia Group, Inc. (EXPE) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
TripAdvisor, Inc. (TRIP) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Airbnb, Inc. (ABNB) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
 
Zacks Investment Research