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Online travel review firm TripAdvisor ( TRIP ) stock shot up Thursday after the company reported better-than-expected Q4 sales and higher profits from its new instant booking system. TripAdvisor stock was up 15%, near 62, in afternoon trading in the stock market today . The company owns websites such as tripadvisor.com and oyster.com. Analysts have expressed concern about a slowing global economy, but late Wednesday, Expedia ( EXPE ) executives assuaged those concerns and said that key markets like the U.S. and Europe remained strong. Expedia stock was up 8% in afternoon trading Thursday, as analysts responded positively to the company’s HomeAway and Orbitz acquisitions . Early Thursday, TripAdvisor said that sales rose 7.3% from Q4 2014 to $309 million. Analysts had estimated $298 million, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters. Earnings clocked in at 45 cents per share minus items, which also beat analyst expectations of 33 cents. On the company’s earnings conference call with analysts, TripAdvisor executives said that the instant booking feature — which allows shoppers to book hotels directly from its website instead of from a third party — expanded to nine more countries in Q4. The online travel reviews company debuted the feature during 2014 in the U.S. and U.K. Display advertising sales growth of 17% contributed to the revenue beat, and subscription revenue rose 23% in Q4. Net earnings per share fell to 2 cents from 25 cents in the year-earlier quarter. RBC Capital Markets analyst Mark Mahaney called the company a “great asset” but “still a risky strategy.” He says that the company has a large customer platform of over 300 million visitors monthly worldwide, though its growth strategy of features such as instant booking carries risks because it may conflict with Priceline ( PCLN ) and Expedia’s interests. Priceline is set to report Q4 results Feb. 17 before the market opens. Scalper1 News
Scalper1 News