Consumers are still spending their dollars on travel and experiences, despite wider economic concerns, according to Airbnb’s most recent earnings report.
The travel giant recorded 103.7 million nights and experiences booked in its second quarter (ending June 30), which is its highest quarterly number ever. That’s 25% year over year and 24% more than in the same quarter three years ago, before the company was hit by the pandemic.
Airbnb still expects a summer of growth. Airbnb also indicated its confidence in its growth by announcing a $2 billion share repurchase program, an effort to offset the dilution of its employee stock program.
“We’re just seeing strong overall nights and growth, 25% year-over-year in nights and experiences, which we’re very confident in,” said CFO Dave Stephenson during a meeting with investors on Tuesday afternoon. “With the same results for Q3, we feel pretty good too. We just see a strong demand for travel from guests around the world.”
In an indication of the current quarter, Airbnb said it posted its highest-ever daily revenue on July 4. Fourth quarter reservations are also already “very strong,” Stephenson added during the conference call.
Wall Street has placed high expectations on the travel industry as the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions end. Even with its best booking number ever, Airbnb still fell slightly below analysts’ estimates for nights and experiences, driving its share down in after-hours trading.
Still, the growth in bookings helped boost the company’s revenue in its most recent quarter. Airbnb came in line with revenue expectations and reported revenue of $2.1 billion, up 58% year-over-year. Airbnb also reported net income of $379 million, which was its most profitable second quarter on record.
“During the height of the pandemic, we made many difficult choices to reduce our spending, making us a leaner and more focused company,” the company said in its statement. letter to shareholders. “We have maintained this discipline ever since, leaving our recruitment and investment plans unchanged since the beginning of the year. Airbnb is well positioned for what lies ahead.”
Airbnb said revenue for the current quarter will be between $2.78 billion and $2.88 billion, which would represent 24% year-over-year growth. That figure includes “a significant headwind from currency movements from last year,” the company said in its shareholder letter.