3) Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)
Forward P/E Ratio as of 13 September: 8.70x
Number of Hedge Funds: 56
Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) provides online travel services for leisure and small business travelers. It provides a wide range of travel shopping and reservation services.
In addition to new travel trends, Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) should continue to benefit from the remote working trend. Wall Street analysts believe that worker flexibility will increase the long-term travel demand. The company’s strong user base, on the back of its leading online travel network, should act as a key advantage that should persist over the next decade, despite challenges from supplier consolidation in the US.
Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)’s ongoing push for the expansion of its international presence should further strengthen the network advantage over time. Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) continues to leverage its AI capabilities, which should also act as a growth enabler.
It embraced the transformative power of AI, with the introduction of more than 40 new AI-powered products and features. These have been designed to offer a more personalized experience for travellers.
The company’s 2Q 2024 results came in at the high end of its expectations as gross bookings and revenue grew 6%. It saw sequential improvement in its consumer brands. Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE)’s merchant revenue increased in 2Q 2024 on a YoY basis mainly because of an increase in merchant hotel revenue. The company’s revenues from “advertising, media, and other” increased as a result of an increase in Expedia Media Solutions’ advertising revenue.
Analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on the shares of Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) on 5th September. They gave a “Neutral” rating and a price target of $130.00. At the end of 2Q 2024, 56 hedge funds in Insider Monkey’s database held stakes in Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE).
Artisan Partners, an investment management company, released its second quarter 2024 investor letter. Here is what the fund said:
“Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) shares declined 18% during the quarter after reducing its full-year outlook. It lowered its revenue growth forecast to mid- to high-single digits for 2024 and said margins will stay flat. On the surface, a business growing in the high-single digits while maintaining profitability isn’t bad. The issue is the company just completed a major restructuring that was supposed to result in accelerated revenue growth and significant margin expansion. Neither is happening. The company continues to underperform the industry and its peers. Importantly, management will not share with us the important metrics and disclosures that might give us the ability to understand why. It continues to just tell us that improvement is coming. That is not enough for us, and we have lost confidence that the changes will have the intended impact on the company’s financial performance. As a result, we decided to exit the investment at a modest profit.”
