Is Booking Holdings (BKNG) a Buying Opportunity as AI Fears Weigh on the Stock?

Is Booking Holdings (BKNG) a Buying Opportunity as AI Fears Weigh on the Stock?

Thu, August 6, 2026 at 3:04 PM GMT+3 3 min read

• BKNG +6.56%
• DX-Y.NYB +0.07%

Antipodes Partners published its "Antipodes Global Strategy" second-quarter 2026 investor letter, highlighting the key performance stocks, portfolio changes, and the market outlook. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. The second quarter of 2026 delivered one of the strongest equity market recoveries in recent history, as global equities gained 14.9% in US dollar terms. Renewed enthusiasm for artificial intelligence, strong corporate earnings, and easing tensions with Iran supported the rebound, while growth stocks outperformed value and emerging markets led gains, particularly Korea and Taiwan. The Antipodes Global Value Strategy underperformed its benchmark during the quarter and over the 12 months to June 30, 2026, as returns became concentrated in a narrow group of semiconductor and hardware stocks. Consumer staples and consumer discretionary holdings supported performance, while information technology, software, and internet exposure detracted. The firm remains cautious on expensive memory companies because pricing and supply remain cyclical despite AI demand. The Strategy continues to favor valued infrastructure, specialty semiconductors, resilient software, and quality businesses. For insights into its key selections for 2026, please review the Strategy's top five holdings.

In its second-quarter 2026 investor letter, Antipodes Global Value Strategy highlighted Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) as a newly added position. Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) provides online and traditional travel and restaurant reservations and related services in the United States and internationally. On August 5, 2026, Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) closed at $207.02 per share. One-month return of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) was 17.95% and its shares lost 4.72% over the past 52 weeks. Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) has a market capitalization of $155.55 billion.

Antipodes Global Value Strategy stated the following regarding Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) in its Q2 2026 investor letter:

"Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) (Entry): Booking Holdings is the leading online travel agency, with room nights and bookings running 2-3x those of its nearest peers, Expedia and Airbnb. The stock has fallen out of favour on concerns that AI agents will divert consumers away from Booking's profitable direct-traffic model. We think the market underappreciates the continued underlying drivers of its no. 1 position, including its deep supply-side relationships with small hotels, paid ad flywheel, loyalty program and metadata. The business is also run by a tenured management team that has navigated it through multiple industry crises. Lingering travel fears tied to the Iran conflict, together with the stock's underperformance versus hotel operators, offer additional margin of safety in a long-term GDP+ travel sector."

Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) is not on our list of the 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 95 hedge fund portfolios held Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) at the end of the first quarter which was 109 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.

In another article, we covered Booking Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:BKNG) and shared Harris Oakmarks' insight on the company. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q2 2026 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

READ NEXT: 33 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 15 Stocks That Will Make You Rich in 10 Years.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.