Why Expedia (EXPE) Shares Are Trading Lower Today
What Happened:
Shares of online travel agency Expedia (NASDAQ:EXPE) fell 20.3% in the morning session after the company reported fourth-quarter results showing revenue growth stalled as its gross bookings came in lower than expected due to a reduction in average air ticket prices and pressures from the Middle East crisis. On the other hand, Expedia beat analysts' adjusted EBITDA expectations this quarter. Expedia's demand outlook wasn't so encouraging. While it expects travel demand to remain relatively healthy, growth rates across the world are expected to decelerate.
Looking ahead, the company expects gross bookings in Q1 to be in the low single digits, with revenue growth in the mid-single digits. The Management added that it continued to see" continued pressure in air business due to reduced pricing levels from increased capacity and the grounding of the Boeing fleet, as well as some pressure in our Vrbo brand."
To lead the company moving ahead, the company announced the appointment of Ariane Gorin as CEO, effective May 13, 2024, succeeding Peter Kern, who will transition to the role of Vice Chairman and continue as a member of the Board of Directors, ensuring a smooth transition. Ariane Gorin has been at Expedia since 2013, where she has served as President of Expedia for Business. Overall, this was a mediocre quarter for Expedia, and the market was likely looking for more bookings.
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What is the market telling us:
Expedia's shares are quite volatile and over the last year have had 7 moves greater than 5%. But moves this big are very rare even for Expedia and that is indicating to us that this news had a significant impact on the market's perception of the business.
The biggest move we wrote about over the last year was 6 months ago, when the stock dropped 11% on the news that the company reported second quarter results that narrowly missed analysts' revenue expectations. Gross bookings missed as well. On an absolute basis, revenue growth was muted.
On the other hand, it was good to see Expedia grow Booked Room Nights. As for full year guidance, the company maintained the previous outlook of double-digit top line growth with margin expansion, which isn't too specific but does describe what Wall Street analysts expect. Overall, it was a mediocre quarter for Expedia, and with high expectations about the strength of travel, these results weren't enough.
Expedia is down 12.3% since the beginning of the year, and at $130.39 per share it is trading 18.2% below its 52-week high of $159.47 from February 2024. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Expedia's shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,030.
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