Booking Holdings’ Revenue Accelerates in Fourth Quarter

Image Source: Booking Holdings

By Brian Nelson, CFA

On February 20, Booking Holdings (BKNG) reported better than expected fourth quarter results with revenue and non-GAAP earnings per share exceeding the consensus forecast. Room nights grew 13% compared to the fourth quarter of 2023, while gross bookings advanced 17% year-over-year (up 18% on a constant-currency basis) in the quarter. Revenue increased 14% (up 15% on a constant-currency basis) from the same period a year ago, better than the 11% (up 12% on a constant currency basis) it recorded for all of full year 2024. Adjusted earnings per share was up 30% on a year-over-year basis, while adjusted EBITDA advanced 26%.

Management had the following to say about the results:

We are pleased to be reporting a strong finish to 2024, with full year revenue increasing by 11% year-over-year while delivering faster profitability growth, as we continue to take a disciplined approach to managing our expenses. We remain highly focused on appropriately investing in our business for the long term, including by leveraging and deploying Generative AI technology to drive further value to our travelers and partners.

Booking Holdings is doing a great job returning cash to shareholders. The company declared a quarterly cash dividend of $9.60 per share, a 10% increase from its quarterly cash dividend of $8.75 per share in 2024. The company repurchased $1.1 billion of stock during the fourth quarter of 2024, and the firm has remaining buyback authorization of $7.7 billion. For the full year 2024, free cash flow was $7.9 billion, roughly 33.3% of sales. Cash and long-term investments were $16.7 billion at the end of the year, about in line with short- and long-term debt of $16.6 billion. We liked Booking Holdings’ accelerated performance in the fourth quarter of 2024 and remain huge fans of its free cash flow generating prowess.

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