Shares of Priceline (PCLN) rose in afternoon trading after the company reported better than expected quarterly results. Following the earnings beat, multiple analysts maintained bullish ratings on Priceline and increased their price targets on the shares.

EARNINGS/GUIDANCE: After the market close yesterday, Priceline reported third quarter adjusted earnings per share of $31.18 on revenue of $3.69B, beating analysts' estimates of $29.32 and $3.62B, respectively. Gross travel bookings for the quarter were $18.5B, up 25% over a year ago, or roughly 26% on a constant-currency basis, the company said. Looking ahead, Priceline guided for fourth quarter EPS in the range of $12.20-$12.80, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.57, and said it expects a 20%-25% year-over-year increase in room nights booked in Q4. The company added that it sees Q4 gross travel bookings to increase 16%-21%, or 17%-22% in constant currency.

OPENTABLE CHARGE: In its earnings release, Priceline said that it recorded a non-cash charge of $941M related to an impairment of OpenTable's goodwill in Q3. The company said that the charge is a result of a change in business strategy as it relates to OpenTable's international expansion and "other growth opportunities." Priceline noted that the change in strategy led to OpenTable updating its forecasted results to reflect a material reduction in forecasted long-term results from such initiatives.

STREET RESEARCH: Following the quarterly report, Piper Jaffray analyst Michael Olson maintained an Overweight rating on Priceline and raised his price target on the shares to $1,700 from $1,625. The analyst said that the company is "well positioned" to capture an increasing share of travel bookings in its core international markets, which his firm anticipates will drive less deceleration in bookings growth than many expect over the coming quarters. Olson noted, however, that Priceline seems to have faced "more challenges than expected" in expanding OpenTable internationally. In addition, Jefferies analyst Brian Fitzgerald reiterated a Buy rating on the stock and raised his price target on the shares to $1,800 from $1,700, citing Priceline's continuing momentum following "another solid quarter." RBC Capital analyst Mark Mahaney also weighed in, keeping an Outperform rating on Priceline while raising his price target to $1,850 from $1,750. Mahaney said that the company's organic growth trends were "robust," while its margin trends improved. The analyst also said that the stock remains one of the best internet large caps, both fundamentally and stock wise. Mahaney added that Priceline continues to have new growth opportunities and said he expects its growth to remain at current levels for some time. Analysts at Raymond James, Oppenheimer, and JPMorgan also backed Overweight ratings on Priceline while analysts from Cowen and UBS kept Buy ratings on the stock.

ANOTHER TO WATCH: TripAdvisor (TRIP), which competes with Priceline in some areas of online travel booking, is scheduled to report on its own quarterly results after the close of market trading today, November 8.

PRICE ACTION: In afternoon trading, Priceline rallied 6.7% to $1,579 per share.