Airbnb Reports Wider Loss but Higher Revenue in Q4 By Investing.com

By Yasin Ebrahim

Airbnb reported Thursday a wider-than-expected loss but higher revenue in the fourth quarter and talked up the prospect of a “significant rebound” in travel later this year as the vaccine rollout continues.   

Airbnb (NASDAQ:ABNB) shares were flat in after-hours trading after falling 9% on Thursday.

The company reported a loss of $11.24 per share on revenue of $859.3 million, compared with Wall Street estimates for a loss of $8.81 per share on revenue of $745.4 million. 

The miss on the bottom line was the result of charges related to its IPO, including $2.8 billion of stock-based compensation expense.

Gross booking value fell 31% to $5.9 billion year-on-year, while average daily rates averaged approximately $128 in Q4 2020, an increase of 13%.

“For revenue, the year-over-year decline in Q1 2021 is expected to be less than that of Q4 2020, as we continue to see gradual improvements in guests’ willingness to book stays. Year-over-year comparisons for revenue are not affected to the same degree by the increase in 2020 cancellations,” the company said.

Looking ahead, the company talked up expectations for a “significant travel rebound,” underpinned by an ongoing vaccine rollout that will lead to the easing of restrictions.  

“Looking forward to 2021, we are preparing for the travel rebound. As the vaccine is rolled out and restrictions lift, we expect there will be a significant travel rebound. Our single priority in 2021 is to prepare for this travel rebound, perfecting our existing product by improving the entire end-to-end experience of our core service for both Hosts and guests.”

Revenue and adjusted EBITDA margin was expected to be at its lowest during Q1. But the year-over-year decline in Q1 2021 was expected to be less than that of Q4 2020, the company said. “We expect that sales and marketing expenses as a percentage of revenue in the first half of 2021 will be higher than that of the second half,” it added.