Brian Chesky, co-founder and chief executive officer of Airbnb Inc., during a news conference in Los Angeles, California, US, on Wednesday, May 1, 2024.
Eric Thayer | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Airbnb shares surged 14% and headed for their best day ever after the company reported stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings.
The stock debuted on the Nasdaq in December 2020, and its sharpest rally to this point came in February 2023. The shares are up 22% this year.
The online rental platform posted earnings of 73 cents per share on $2.48 billion in revenue. That topped analyst estimates of 58 cents per share of earnings and $2.42 billion in revenue, according to LSEG. Revenue increased 12% from a year ago.
“Airbnb is a fundamentally stronger company today than it was several years ago,” the company said in a letter to shareholders. “We’re continuing to build on this momentum in 2025, executing a multi-year strategy to perfect the core service, accelerate growth in global markets, and launch and scale new offerings.”
The company also swung to a profit, reporting net income of $461 million, or 73 cents per share. In the year-ago quarter, Airbnb reported a loss of $349 million, or 55 cents a share. Adjusted profit totaled $765 million, reflecting 4% year over year growth.
Gross booking value, which measures host earnings, taxes, and service and cleaning fees, rose to $17.6 billion and topped a StreetAccount forecast of $17.2 billion. Airbnb also reported 111 million nights and experience booked for the period, representing 12% year-over-year growth. That was above the 108.7 million StreetAccount estimate.
During an earnings call with investors, finance chief Ellie Mertz said Airbnb will invest $200 million to $250 million to scale new business opportunities it plans to announce in May.
“We want the Airbnb app — kind of similar to Amazon — to be one place to go for all of your traveling and living needs,” CEO Brian Chesky said on the call. He also said that each business the company plans to roll out could take three to five years to scale but should strengthen its core business.
“A great business could get to $1 billion of revenue,” he said. “And you should be able to expect one or a couple of businesses to launch every single year for the next five years.”
Despite the strong fourth-quarter results, Airbnb offered light guidance for the current quarter of $2.23 billion to $2.27 billion in revenue. That trailed a $2.3 billion estimate from LSEG. The company said the first quarter of 2024 benefitted from Easter and an extra day in February.
Airbnb also commented on the recent wildfires that ravaged the Los Angeles area last month, saying that its nonprofit Airbnb.org housed over 19,000 people and 2,300 pets and has received $27 million in donations. That includes $18 million from its founders.
— Ashley Capoot contributed reporting
