Airbnb reports fourth-quarter results that beat on revenue

Airbnb's shares faced a decline of 3% in after-hours trading on Thursday following the release of its fourth-quarter financial results, which fell short of analysts' expectations for earnings. According to estimates compiled by LSEG, the company reported a net income of $341 million, equating to 56 cents per share, down from $461 million, or 73 cents per share, in the same quarter last year. The decrease in earnings was attributed to $90 million in non-income tax expenses and planned investments aimed at fostering growth and implementing new policies. Despite the earnings setback, Airbnb's revenue did see a notable increase of 12%, rising to $2.48 billion compared to the previous year. Impressively, Airbnb has surpassed Wall Street's revenue forecasts in 20 of the past 21 quarters, as reported by FactSet. Looking ahead, the company anticipates reporting revenue between $2.59 billion and $2.63 billion for the current quarter, which exceeds analysts' expectations of $2.53 billion. For the full year, Airbnb projects revenue growth of at least low double digits, while analysts estimated a growth rate of 10.2%. The company concluded 2025 with strong operational momentum, emphasizing the robustness of its core business model, which connects homeowners willing to rent their properties with travelers seeking accommodations. In terms of bookings, Airbnb recorded 121.9 million nights and seats booked in the fourth quarter, reflecting a 10% increase from the previous year and surpassing the StreetAccount expectation of 117.6 million. The gross booking value, which encompasses host earnings, service fees, cleaning fees, and taxes, reached $20.4 billion, marking a 16% year-over-year increase and exceeding the anticipated $19.4 billion. Additionally, Airbnb reported an adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) of $786 million for the quarter. Notably, last month, Airbnb appointed Ahmad Al-Dahle, the former head of generative artificial intelligence at Meta, as its new chief technology officer, following the departure of Ari Balogh, who had served in that role for over seven years.