VRMA Administrator
Airbnb reported record revenues and profits in the third quarter, with net income climbing 46 percent year-over-year to $1.2 billion while revenue rose 29 percent to $2.9 billion. The platform's 99.7 million "nights and experiences" booked by a record 90 million guest arrivals marked a 25 percent year-over-year gain. Yet investors concerned about a potential softening in the company's fourth-quarter forecasts sent Airbnb's stock price down in after-hours trading. "As the impact of the pandemic recedes but macro conditions persist, we expect a continued, albeit choppy, recovery of cross-border travel to be a further tailwind to future results," Airbnb stated. Company executives added that hosts who joined the platform during the pandemic have remained "as strong, if not even stronger" in "stickiness" and "engagement" as hosts who joined before the crisis. Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky expects third-quarter results will surprise analysts who thought stays of a month or longer would not last beyond the pandemic, noting "long-term stays remain 20 percent of our total gross nights booked on Airbnb." While company executives acknowledged that some economies are weakening or approaching recession by making moves to strengthen competitive pricing on Airbnb, the platform has no plans for wholesale structural changes, although more transparency will be added.
Skift.com (11/01/22) Sean O'Neill
