Airbnb stock slipped Friday after the vacation home booking company gave a weaker-than-expected second-quarter sales forecast and said it has seen "softer" U.S. demand. Airbnb's first-quarter results came in slightly ahead of Wall Street forecasts.
Airbnb said that it earned 24 cents per share on sales of $2.27 billion for the March-ended quarter. Analysts polled by FactSet projected the San Francisco-based company would post earnings of 23 cents per share on sales of $2.26 billion.
Airbnb said it expects $3.01 billion in sales for the current June-ending quarter, based on the midpoint of the company's given range. Analysts were projecting $3.03 billion in Q2 sales for Airbnb prior to the report. Further, Airbnb said it expects year-over-year growth rates for nights and experiences booked on Airbnb to "moderate" compared to the previous quarter.
"During April, we saw strong demand for Easter travel from Latin America — which remains our fastest growing region," the company said in a letter to shareholders. "Whereas in the U.S., we've seen relatively softer results, which we believe has been largely driven by broader economic uncertainties."
On the stock market today, Airbnb stock shed a fraction to 123.46 in recent action.
Airbnb U.S. Travel Demand Caution
Airbnb's caution on travel demand comes after several U.S.-focused airlines have declined to provide June-quarter guidance in recent weeks, citing uncertainty over the response to tariffs.
Airbnb Chief Financial Officer Ellie Mertz told analysts Thursday that Airbnb is seeing "relative softness" in the U.S. for bookings that are more than a month away, with stronger performance for travel bookings made with less notice.
"We do have some U.S. consumers that are waiting and seeing before they book their summer travel," Mertz said.
Airbnb is also seeing a "decline in popularity of foreign travelers coming to the U.S.," Mertz said. But she added that the majority of U.S. travel is domestic. And many international travelers are simply booking other destinations outside the U.S.
Airbnb Stock Downgraded
Following the report, Wedbush analyst Scott Devitt lowered his rating on Airbnb stock to neutral from outperform.
He cited the recent slowdown in travel demand trends.
"We continue to have immense respect for the Airbnb management team and the long-term opportunity but believe now is a reasonable time for investors to have less exposure to the sector," Devitt wrote.
With Friday's early slide, Airbnb shares have lost 7.5% this year compared to a 3.9% loss for the S&P 500.
Coming into the report, Airbnb stock had an IBD Composite Rating of 68 out of a best-possible 99, according to IBD Stock Checkup. The score combines five separate proprietary ratings into one rating. The best growth stocks have a Composite Rating of 90 or better.
