Brian Chesky, CEO and co-founder of Airbnb
Mike Sager | reuters
shares of Airbnb rose nearly 9% in extended trading on Tuesday after the company released fourth quarter earnings It beat analysts’ estimates at the top and bottom line.
Here’s how the company did:
- EPS: 48 cents versus the 25 cents expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.
- Income: $1.90 billion versus the $1.86 billion expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv.
Revenue for the fourth quarter was up 24% year over year. Airbnb reports $319 million increase in net income for the quarter $55 million year ago, and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and Amortization of $506 million, surpassing the $432 million expected by analysts, according to StreetAccount.
In its shareholder letter, Airbnb said it sees continued strong demand through early 2023. The company said first-quarter revenue would be between $1.75 billion and $1.82 billion, higher than the $1.69 billion expected by analysts polled by Refinitiv.
Airbnb said it made difficult choices to cut costs during the pandemic but has modestly increased its workforce over the past two years. The company said it expects to “continue hiring at a prudent pace” in 2023, and that compared to 2019, its headcount is down 5% while revenue is up 75%.
Gross booking value, which Airbnb uses to track host income, service fees, cleaning fees and taxes, totaled $13.5 billion in the fourth quarter. The company reported 88.2 million nights and experiences booked in the fourth quarter, up 20% year over year, according to StreetAccount, but well below the 89.7 million expected by analysts.
Airbnb said in the investor letter that travelers are returning to major cities, which have historically been one of the “strongest areas” of its business. The company said domestic and short-haul travel remained strong, but it saw “even more improvement” in long-haul and cross-border travel during the quarter.
Airbnb said growth in guest demand and supply remained strong throughout 2022.
Average daily rates decreased 1% from a year ago to $153 in the fourth quarter. The company ended 2022 with 6.6 million active listings, representing an increase of over 900,000 or 16% compared to 2021.
Airbnb said it is “particularly encouraged” by market share growth in Latin America, Asia Pacific and continued improvement within European travelers who are booking summer vacations early.
The company will hold its quarterly call with investors on Tuesday at 4:30PM ET.