(Reuters) -Vacation home rentals company Airbnb posted higher quarterly revenue on Thursday as international travel demand remained strong, although it forecast slower growth for the first quarter due to tough year-over-year comparisons and a stronger dollar.
The travel company said it was benefiting from continued growth in Latin America and sustained cross-border travel demand in Asia Pacific and Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Shares of the company were up 11% in trading after the bell.
Airbnb forecast first-quarter revenue of $2.23 billion to $2.27 billion, a 4% to 6% increase, compared with a year earlier. The company said revenue growth benefited during the same period in 2024 from the timing of Easter and the inclusion of Leap Day.
A strong U.S. currency is making it more expensive for multinational companies like Airbnb to convert profits booked abroad into dollars. In January, the U.S. dollar index reached a two-year high.
The average daily rate, or the cost per night, is expected to decline slightly year-over-year in the first quarter due to exchange rates.
Excluding the impact of the calendar and foreign exchange rate, Airbnb anticipates revenue to increase in the range of 10% to 12% from a year earlier.
The company expects Nights and Experiences Booked in the first quarter to be flat, compared with the same period a year earlier, when excluding Leap Day. About 133 million nights and experiences were booked in the first quarter of 2024.
The San Francisco-based company said it was benefiting from the launch of its co-host network four months ago which allows a manager to take care of guests and the property on behalf of the owner. It said that co-host listings earn about twice as much as other Airbnb listings in comparable countries.
Airbnb also said that it plans to invest $200 million to $250 million towards launching and scaling new businesses during the year.
Revenue rose 11.8% to $2.48 billion for the fourth quarter ended December 31.
(Reporting by Aishwarya Jain in Bengaluru and Doyinsola Oladipo in New York; Editing by Anil D’Silva)
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