Airbnb reported results for the first quarter that mostly aligned with analysts’ expectations, but issued a revenue forecast for the second quarter that disappointed investors, causing shares to drop more than 5%. The company posted earnings of 24 cents per share, matching the consensus estimate, and reported revenue of $2.27 billion, slightly surpassing the expected $2.26 billion. Revenue grew 6% year-over-year from $2.1 billion, but net income fell to $154 million, or 24 cents per share, compared to $264 million, or 41 cents per share, in the same quarter last year.
Looking ahead to the second quarter, Airbnb projected revenue between $2.99 billion and $3.05 billion, with the midpoint at $3.02 billion. This forecast fell short of analysts’ expectations, which had been for $3.04 billion in revenue. The company also noted that the quarter would benefit by approximately two percentage points due to the timing of Easter.
Airbnb pointed to softer results in the U.S., which it attributed to broader economic uncertainties. Despite this, the company saw strong growth in North America year-over-year, although travel from Canada to the U.S. showed signs of weakness toward the end of the quarter. The majority of nights booked in the U.S. came from domestic travelers.
Gross booking value, which includes host earnings, service fees, cleaning fees, and taxes, grew 7% year-over-year to $24.5 billion, in line with expectations. Nights and experiences booked increased by 8% to 143.1 million, though slightly missing the 143.4 million estimate. Excluding North America, nights and experiences grew by 11% from the previous year, with a notable 27% increase in nights booked by Canadian guests traveling to Mexico in March.
Airbnb also highlighted a strong demand for Easter travel from Latin America, which continues to be its fastest-growing region. The company teased new updates to its platform, beyond accommodations, and mentioned that it had removed 450,000 listings after updating its host quality system in 2023.
The company’s executives are set to host an earnings call with analysts later this afternoon.
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