Booking Holdings, a US-based operator of online travel planning services, saw its revenue rise by 8 per cent in the second quarter, whilst its net profit increased 2.2-fold.
According to a Booking press release, revenue for April–June stood at $7.35 billion, compared with $6.8 billion for the same period last year. The consensus forecast from analysts surveyed by FactSet for this figure was $7.19 billion.
The company’s net profit for the last quarter rose to $1.95 billion, or $2.53 per share, from $895 million, or $1.1 per share, a year earlier. Earnings excluding one-off items stood at $2.54 per share, compared with analysts’ average forecast of $2.43 per share.
In early April, Booking carried out a 25-to-1 share split; per-share figures for previous periods have been restated accordingly.
Gross booking volume in the last quarter rose by 9 per cent to $51 billion. The number of nights booked increased by 5 per cent to 325 million.
Booking continues to expect revenue growth this year to be in the range of 7–9 per cent (high single digits), and adjusted earnings per share to grow by 13–16 per cent (low to mid-teens). Revenue growth for the third quarter is forecast at 4–6 per cent (consensus: 7.8 per cent).
The company will pay a dividend of $0.42 per share for the second quarter. Between April and June, the company repurchased its own shares worth $3.7 billion.
Booking’s shares rose by 5.6% in after-hours trading on Tuesday following the release of its results.