Airbnb posts $4.4 billion profit with help from tax break, revenue surge

Airbnb said Wednesday it earned $4.37 billion in the third quarter as it booked a large tax benefit and posted higher-than-expected revenue during the summer travel season.

However, the rental giant’s forecast of fourth-quarter revenue fell short of Wall Street expectations. Its shares fell more than 2% in after-hours trading.

Airbnb said that excluding the tax benefit, net income would have been $1.6 billion, up from $1.2 billion a year earlier.

Revenue rose 18% to $3.4 billion as the company saw a 14% increase in bookings and slightly higher average prices for short-term rentals. Analysts expected the San Francisco company to post revenue of $3.37 billion, according to a FactSet survey.

Airbnb predicted fourth-quarter revenue between $2.13 billion and $2.17 billion, below Wall Street’s forecast of $2.18 billion.

Airbnb said it seeing more volatility in its business early in the fourth quarter, which began Oct. 1, and expects the growth in nights booked to “moderate” compared with third-quarter growth.

“We’re focused on making hosting just as popular as traveling on Airbnb, and we believe our approach is working,” a shareholder letter stated. “Active listings grew 19% in Q3 2023 relative to Q3 2022, and we continued to see double-digit supply growth across all regions and markettypes. In Q3 alone, Airbnb Hosts earned more than $19 billion. We’ll continue to raise awareness around hosting, make it easier to get started, and improve the overall experience for hosts. “