Expedia Earnings Lift Full Year Outlook After Strong Q3
Expedia earnings showed strong bookings and revenue and lifted full-year ranges while softer Q4 revenue and EBITDA guidance could temper positioning
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Third-quarter gross bookings rose 11% and revenue was about $4.94 billion.
- Raised full-year gross bookings to $131.4-$131.9 billion and revenue to $16.37-$16.43 billion.
- Fourth-quarter guidance narrowed to revenue $3.69-$3.75 billion and adjusted EBITDA $830-$880 million.
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Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) reported stronger third-quarter demand on Nov. 4, with gross bookings and revenue growth prompting the company to raise its full-year outlook. However, management warned that travel disruptions and tougher year-over-year comparisons would slow growth in the fourth quarter.
Third-Quarter Results and Updated Outlook
For the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2026, Expedia’s total gross bookings rose 11% year over year to $131.4 billion–$131.9 billion, according to a press release filed as an exhibit to a Form 8-K. Booked room nights reached 115.7 million, up 7.5 million from a year earlier. Lodging gross bookings increased 10%, driven by a 19% rise in business-to-business (B2B) bookings compared with 7% growth in business-to-consumer (B2C) bookings.
Revenue climbed 12% year over year to approximately $4.94 billion, with a 23% increase in B2B revenue identified as the primary driver. GAAP net income rose 7%, while adjusted net income increased 19%. Adjusted EBITDA, a proxy for operating profit, grew 17% with margin expansion of 135 basis points. Diluted GAAP earnings per share (EPS) rose 15%, and adjusted EPS increased 24% to $9.39. CEO Ariane Gorin said the company “exceeded the high end of our guidance in the quarter, reflecting resilient travel demand and strong execution.”
Following the quarter’s results, Expedia raised its full-year 2026 gross-bookings range to $131.4 billion–$131.9 billion, implying roughly 10% growth, and lifted its revenue range to $16.37 billion–$16.43 billion. Management projected full-year adjusted EBITDA margin expansion of 180 to 200 basis points and modeled a roughly one-percentage-point foreign-exchange tailwind to bookings and a two-point tailwind to revenue.
For the fourth quarter, the company forecast gross bookings of $27.9 billion to $28.4 billion and revenue of $3.69 billion to $3.75 billion. Adjusted EBITDA was projected between $830 million and $880 million, implying a margin near 22.5% to 23.5%. Management said this outlook assumed minimal foreign-exchange impact at then-current rates and noted that travel disruptions, tougher year-over-year comparisons, and the timing of a promotion would weigh on growth.
Capital Returns and Management Remarks
During the quarter, Expedia repurchased about 2 million shares for $576 million. Participants on the Nov. 4 earnings call included CEO Ariane Gorin, CFO Derek Andersen, and investor-relations executive Sham Alam. The company directed readers to its latest Form 10-K and Form 10-Q filings for disclosures related to forward-looking statements.
