Airbnb Shares Decline as Second Quarter Bookings Fall Short of Analyst Projections
On Thursday, Airbnb experienced a 6% drop in shares during extended trading after reporting lower-than-expected bookings for the second quarter. The short-term home-rental company failed to meet analysts’ projections for nights and experiences booked.
Here’s a breakdown of Airbnb’s second-quarter performance:
– Earnings: The company reported earnings of 98 cents per share.
– Revenue: Airbnb generated $2.48 billion in revenue.
It remains unclear whether these figures align with analysts’ estimates. Despite this setback, Airbnb’s revenue still saw an 18% increase year over year during the second quarter. Net income also rose to $650 million, compared to approximately $379 million, marking an improvement from the same period last year.
In terms of booking value, Airbnb recorded $19.1 billion, a 12% rise from the second quarter of the previous year and surpassing the consensus of $18.99 billion among analysts surveyed by StreetAccount.
Airbnb reported a total of 115.1 million nights and experiences booked for the quarter, representing an almost 11% increase. However, this fell short of the StreetAccount consensus of 117.6 million. Notably, the growth rate of nights and experiences booked decelerated to 11% in the first quarter, compared to the 19% increase seen in the previous quarter.
According to a shareholder letter, Airbnb acknowledged the challenging comparison it faced in terms of year-over-year growth in nights and experiences booked. The company did show signs of improvement, with growth rates increasing from 10% in April to 15% in June. Particularly promising were the year-over-year night bookings in North America throughout the quarter and the recovery observed in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) in June after facing difficult holiday comparisons in May.
The gross booking value per night came in at $166.01, representing a 1% year-over-year increase.
Looking ahead, Airbnb provided guidance for the third quarter, estimating revenue between $3.3 billion and $3.4 billion, signaling 14% to 18% growth. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv had previously predicted $3.22 billion. Management expects a “modest” sequential acceleration in nights and experiences booked.
During the second quarter, Airbnb introduced a new feature called Rooms, aiming to enhance the appeal of affordable private bedrooms available for rent, priced at an average of $67 per night.
Despite the after-hours decline, Airbnb shares have still risen by about 64% year-to-date, outperforming the 17% increase seen in the S&P 500 stock index over the same period.
To elaborate further on the company’s performance, executives will engage in a conference call with analysts, scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m. ET.
This is a breaking news story, and updates will be provided as more information becomes available.
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