Airbnb experienced a remarkable surge in its stock value, recording a 14.5% rise on its best trading day ever, following the announcement of its impressive fourth-quarter earnings. The company reported 111 million nights and experiences booked, representing a 12% year-over-year growth. Airbnb's revenue reached $2.48 billion, surpassing analysts' expectations of $2.42 billion, and marking a 12% increase from the previous year.
The company's adjusted profit totaled $765 million, reflecting a 4% year-over-year growth and a significant improvement from a loss of $349 million in the same quarter last year. Gross booking value, measuring host earnings, taxes, and service and cleaning fees, soared to $17.6 billion. This financial performance contributed to Airbnb's net income of $461 million, or 73 cents per share.
Airbnb also reaped benefits from an extended holiday season in the first quarter of 2024, thanks to Easter and an extra day in February. Looking ahead, the company plans to invest between $200 million and $250 million to scale new business opportunities, with announcements expected in May.
CEO Brian Chesky expressed his vision for the company's future:
"We want the Airbnb app — kind of similar to Amazon — to be one place to go for all of your traveling and living needs."
Additionally, Chesky hinted at ambitious revenue goals:
"A great business could get to $1 billion of revenue."
Airbnb's nonprofit arm, Airbnb.org, continued its philanthropic efforts by housing over 19,000 people and 2,300 pets with $27 million in donations. The company's guidance for the current quarter projects revenue between $2.23 billion and $2.27 billion.
Since its stock market debut on Nasdaq in December 2020, Airbnb's shares have appreciated approximately 23% this year alone. The company remains focused on executing its multi-year strategy to enhance core services and expand globally.
"We're continuing to build on this momentum in 2025, executing a multi-year strategy to perfect the core service, accelerate growth in global markets, and launch and scale new offerings," stated Airbnb.