Key Takeaways:
- Gross booking value hit $29 billion in Q1, up 19% year over year.
- Revenue of $2.7 billion beat guidance by two percentage points.
- The 2026 FIFA World Cup added 100,000-plus new home listings across 16 cities.
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Airbnb hits $29 billion in quarterly bookings as growth story accelerates
Airbnb reported $29 billion in gross booking value for Q1, up 19% year over year, as travel demand accelerated across markets.
"Underlying demand is strong. Our product improvements are working. Our monetization initiatives are gaining traction," CFO Ellie Mertz said on the earnings call.
Revenue reached $2.7 billion, up 18% and beating the high end of prior guidance by two points. Adjusted EBITDA rose 24% to $519 million. Net income of $160 million absorbed a $70 million one-time charge tied to changes in the U.S. Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax, pushing Q1 EPS to $0.26 versus the $0.31 consensus estimate.
*Based on high end of prior guidance range
App bookings accounted for 63% of total nights, up from 58% a year earlier, and grew 22%. Reserve Now, Pay Later drove roughly 20% of global gross booking value after only a few quarters of global rollout. First-time bookers grew 10%, the fastest rate since 2022.
Emerging markets provided a tailwind. India origin nights rose roughly 50% year over year, while Brazil compounded at more than 20%. The average daily rate rose 9%, and nights and seats booked increased 9% despite a roughly 100-basis-point headwind tied to the Middle East conflict.
Airbnb repurchased $1.1 billion of Class A stock in Q1 and has $4.5 billion remaining on its authorization. The company has bought back $14.8 billion total since Q3 2022, reducing the fully diluted share count by roughly 9%. Trailing 12-month free cash flow stood at $4.5 billion, a 36% margin.
The company raised its full-year 2026 outlook to low-to-mid teens revenue growth with an adjusted EBITDA margin of at least 35%. Q2 guidance calls for $3.54 billion to $3.6 billion in revenue, implying 14% to 16% year-over-year growth. The analyst consensus price target sits at $156.74, with 19 buy ratings, four outperform calls, 18 holds and two sells, according to data compiled by TIKR.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup, which management called the largest event in company history, has already drawn 100,000-plus new home listings across 16 host cities. The Winter Olympics in Milan brought roughly 200,000 guests, with supply in host markets up about 30% and gross booking value more than tripling. Roughly 60% of engineering code is now AI co-authored, as Chesky said the company "has to move at the speed of AI."
The guidance raise shows management expects demand to sustain through the second half of 2026. Investors will watch Q2 results due in August for signs of World Cup-related booking acceleration.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
