Leadership Changes - Kenta Kon has been promoted to president and CEO of Toyota Motor, effective April 1, succeeding Koji Sato, who will become vice chairman and chief industry officer [2] - Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah will step down as CFO of Uber on February 16, 2026, and will be replaced by Balaji Krishnamurthy, currently vice president of strategic finance at Uber [3] - Peer Bueller has been promoted to CEO of Kayak, succeeding cofounder Steve Hafner, who will become executive chair and focus on AI innovation at Booking Holdings [4] - Liz Coddington, CFO of Peloton, is leaving for a similar role at Palmetto, with her departure effective March 30 [5] - Anubhav Mittal's employment offer to become CFO of Universal Corp. has been withdrawn, and Johan Kroner will continue as CFO until a successor is named [6] Background of Key Individuals - Kenta Kon has been with Toyota since 1991 and served as CFO since July 2025 [2] - Balaji Krishnamurthy joined Uber in 2019 and has held various leadership roles, including head of investor relations [3] - Peer Bueller joined Kayak in 2016 as CFO and took on the COO role in 2021 [4] - Liz Coddington joined Peloton as CFO in June 2022, previously working at Amazon and other notable companies [5] - Anubhav Mittal has worked at ADM for 10 years, most recently as CFO of ADM Nutrition, a $8 billion business [6] Company Implications - Toyota's leadership transition may signal a strategic shift under new management [2] - Uber's CFO change could impact its financial strategy and investor relations [3] - Kayak's new CEO may drive innovation and operational changes within the company [4] - Peloton's CFO transition could affect its financial management and strategic direction [5] - Universal Corp.'s withdrawal of Mittal's offer may create uncertainty in its financial leadership [6]

Core Viewpoint - Booking Holdings (NASDAQ:BKNG) is a major player in the online travel industry, facing competition from companies like Expedia and TripAdvisor. The stock was downgraded by Citigroup from "Outperform" to "Market Perform" with a price of $4,644.64 at the time of the downgrade [1][5]. Stock Performance - BKNG's stock closed at $4,644.64, reflecting a significant decline of 9.32% from the previous day, which is more severe compared to the S&P 500, Dow, and Nasdaq, which saw losses of 0.84%, 0.34%, and 1.43% respectively [2]. - Over the past month, BKNG's stock has decreased by 4.57%, underperforming the Retail-Wholesale sector's gain of 6.19% and the S&P 500's increase of 1.8% [2]. Upcoming Earnings Report - Investors are anticipating BKNG's earnings report scheduled for February 18, 2026, with an expected earnings per share (EPS) of $47.53, representing a 14.39% increase from the same quarter last year [3]. - The Zacks Consensus Estimate projects net sales of $6.11 billion, indicating an 11.69% rise from the previous year, suggesting potential growth despite recent stock performance challenges [3]. Trading Range and Market Capitalization - BKNG's stock has traded between a low of $4,615.19 and a high of $5,115 in the current session, with a yearly high of $5,839.41 and a low of $4,096.23 [4]. - The company's market capitalization is approximately $149.7 billion, with a current trading volume of 625,999 shares on the NASDAQ exchange [4].

Core Viewpoint - The article summarizes significant research calls from Wall Street, highlighting upgrades for various companies that could influence market movements [1] Group 1: Upgrades - BofA upgraded Five Below (FIVE) to Buy from Underperform with a price target of $233, increased from $158, citing improvements under new leadership [2] - Compass Point upgraded PayPal (PYPL) to Neutral from Sell with a price target of $51, indicating that shares are reflecting "peak uncertainty" following the earnings report [2] - Citizens upgraded Airbnb (ABNB) to Outperform from Market Perform with a price target of $160, anticipating multiple catalysts that could enhance performance [2] - Mizuho upgraded Booking Holdings (BKNG) to Outperform from Neutral with an unchanged price target of $6,000, suggesting a 30% upside and viewing the recent pullback as a buying opportunity [2] - Baird upgraded GE Vernova (GEV) to Outperform from Neutral with a price target of $923, up from $701, believing the energy infrastructure cycle is still in early stages and GE Vernova will benefit significantly [2]

Group 1 - Whales have adopted a bearish stance on Booking Holdings, with 52% of trades being bearish and only 22% bullish, indicating a cautious outlook among large investors [1] - The total volume of options trades includes 22 puts amounting to $1,688,051 and 48 calls totaling $2,867,634, reflecting a significant interest in both directions [1] - Major market movers are focusing on a price band between $3,800.0 and $8,200.0 for Booking Holdings over the last three months, suggesting a range of expected price movements [2] Group 2 - Analyzing volume and open interest is crucial for understanding the liquidity and interest in Booking Holdings' options, particularly within the identified price range [3] - Booking Holdings is the largest online travel agency globally, providing a wide array of booking services, with transaction fees being the primary source of revenue [4] - Recent expert ratings suggest an average target price of $6,039.8 for Booking Holdings, indicating a potential upside from current levels [6] Group 3 - The current stock price of Booking Holdings is $5,065.0, reflecting a decline of 6.5%, with trading volume at 213,233 [7] - RSI indicators suggest that the stock is currently in a neutral position, neither overbought nor oversold, which may influence trading strategies [7] - Upcoming earnings are expected to be released in 15 days, which could impact market sentiment and trading activity [7]

Leadership Changes - Kayak co-founder and CEO Steve Hafner has stepped down after 22 years, with CFO Peer Bueller appointed as the new CEO [1] - Hafner will transition to a newly created role as executive chair, focusing on advancing AI innovation at Booking Holdings [2] Company Background - Kayak was co-founded by Hafner and Paul English in 2004, becoming a leading travel metasearch platform alongside competitors like Skyscanner, Trivago, and Tripadvisor [4] - Booking Holdings acquired Kayak for $2.1 billion in 2013, as part of a strategy to own a metasearch company for in-house marketing and revenue generation from rival advertising [5] Market Dynamics - The rise of Google in generative AI and its dominance in hotel and flight metasearch has diminished the perceived value of metasearch platforms like Kayak [6] - In October 2025, Booking Holdings reported a $457 million writedown on Kayak, citing expected lower future cash flows and higher customer acquisition costs, largely due to changes in Google's search practices [7]

Core Insights - Booking Holdings has appointed Peer Bueller as the new CEO of KAYAK, succeeding Steve Hafner, who will transition to the role of Executive Chair [1][3] - Peer Bueller has been with KAYAK since 2016, initially as Chief Financial Officer and later as Chief Operating Officer, focusing on expansion and innovation [2][5] - Steve Hafner, a co-founder of KAYAK, has led the company for 22 years and will now focus on advancing AI innovation within Booking Holdings [3][4] Company Overview - KAYAK is a leading travel search engine under Booking Holdings, facilitating billions of queries to help users find flights, accommodations, rental cars, and vacation packages [7] - Booking Holdings operates in over 220 countries and territories, providing online travel services through brands like Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, KAYAK, and OpenTable [8] Leadership Transition - Steve Hafner expressed confidence in Peer Bueller's leadership, highlighting his significant contributions to KAYAK's success [4] - Peer Bueller aims to enhance KAYAK's user experience and capitalize on growth opportunities as the new CEO [6]

Summary of Global Hotels & Leisure Conference Call Industry Overview - The conference call discusses the impact of current dollar weakness on the Global Hotels & Leisure industry, particularly focusing on companies with significant international revenue exposure and those with costs denominated in different currencies. Key Points Winners from Dollar Weakness 1. **Booking Holdings (BKNG)**: - Beneficiary of dollar weakness with nearly 80% of room nights outside the US, particularly benefiting from strong Euro against the USD [2][12] - Earnings estimates increased by 2-3% due to favorable FX impact [1] 2. **Airbnb (ABNB)**: - 55% of revenues earned outside the US, with 33% exposure to Europe and 11% each to APAC and LATAM, leading to a positive earnings tailwind from USD weakness [3][12] - Earnings estimates raised by 2-3% [1] 3. **Carnival Corporation (CCL)**: - 45% of revenues generated outside the US, primarily in Europe, benefiting from favorable currency translation [3][12] - Earnings estimates increased by 2-3% [1] 4. **Other Beneficiaries**: - Hilton, Marriott, IHG, and Royal Caribbean (RCL) will also see benefits, but to a lesser extent due to limited non-USD exposure [3] Losers from Dollar Weakness 1. **Accor**: - Despite only 3% of room exposure in the US, approximately 35% of EBITDA is generated in USD while reporting in EUR, leading to a negative impact from dollar weakness [4][14] - Earnings estimates trimmed by ~3% [1] 2. **Hyatt**: - Managed resorts in the Mexican Caribbean earn revenues in USD but have costs in Mexican Pesos, leading to margin compression due to dollar weakness [5][14] - Incentive management fees are sensitive to USD/MXN exchange rates, resulting in a 3-4% headwind to earnings for 2026-2027 [5][15] Financial Implications - The overall impact of dollar weakness is expected to create a material earnings tailwind for US-denominated stocks with high non-US revenue exposure, while negatively affecting those with significant USD costs and EUR-denominated earnings [1][11] - The dollar is down MSD-high teens year-over-year against major currencies, which will have a significant impact on the earnings of companies in the travel sector [9] Investment Ratings - Despite the FX impacts, the investment ratings remain unchanged with Outperform ratings for Marriott, Hyatt, Accor, Melia, Royal Caribbean, and Airbnb [8] Additional Insights - The analysis highlights the importance of currency exposure in the hospitality sector, emphasizing that companies with significant international operations are better positioned to benefit from a weaker dollar [11][20] - The sensitivity of earnings to currency fluctuations is a critical factor for investors to consider when evaluating these companies [14][15] This summary encapsulates the key insights from the conference call regarding the impact of dollar weakness on the Global Hotels & Leisure industry, identifying both winners and losers, and providing a financial outlook for the affected companies.

Summary of Conference Call Notes Industry Overview - The focus is on the Online Travel Agency (OTA) industry in China, particularly in relation to Booking's strategies and market positioning amid antitrust investigations [1] Core Insights and Arguments - The market has shown divergence regarding domestic OTAs due to the investigation initiated on January 14, which has raised concerns about regulatory impacts [1] - Despite the antitrust scrutiny, Booking has managed to increase its market share and maintain stable commission rates, indicating a robust business model [1] - Booking is shifting from an agency model to a merchant model, allowing it to control cash flow and pricing by requiring prepayments, thus avoiding direct legal challenges related to price parity clauses [1] Additional Important Content - Booking utilizes significant Google advertising investments to secure public traffic and employs membership programs like Genius and Preferred Partner to transfer costs to hotels, creating a blurred comparison system [2] - The strategy includes cross-selling "flight + hotel" packages, which conceals room rates within bundled pricing [2] - Domestic OTAs still hold a leading advantage in mobile platforms and the Asia-Pacific supply chain [2] - The report serves as a comprehensive record of Booking's decade-long antitrust defense and is a valuable reference for understanding the current state of domestic OTAs [2] - Risk factors include potential overreach in EU antitrust regulations, rising costs of traffic acquisition, and excessive reliance on Google advertising [2]

Core Viewpoint - Booking Holdings (BKNG) is viewed as a strong long-term investment opportunity, especially following a recent decline attributed to concerns over travel and competition from AI [1]. Group 1: Company Overview - Booking Holdings has demonstrated solid compounding growth over time, indicating its resilience and potential for future performance [1]. Group 2: Market Context - The recent pullback in Booking Holdings' stock price is linked to fears surrounding the travel industry and the impact of AI competition, which may present a buying opportunity for investors [1].

Core Viewpoint - Booking Holdings (BKNG) is viewed as a strong long-term investment opportunity, particularly following a recent decline attributed to concerns over travel and competition from AI [1]. Group 1: Company Overview - Booking Holdings has demonstrated solid compounding growth over time, indicating its resilience and potential for future performance [1]. Group 2: Investment Perspective - The recent pullback in Booking Holdings' stock price is seen as a buying opportunity, suggesting that current market fears may be overblown [1].