New York, Feb 12, 2026, 19:14 (EST) — After-hours
- Expedia laid out 2026 bookings and revenue targets that came in ahead of Wall Street’s expectations.
- After hours, the stock fell. Earlier, it had seen sharp swings throughout the day.
- Investors are watching business-client demand, tracking discount trends, and waiting for U.S. inflation numbers set for Friday.
Expedia Group (EXPE.O) lost $6, finishing late after-hours at $227.24, a fall of about 2.6%. Shares whipped between $208.05 and $246.66 during the session. Roughly 6.1 million shares changed hands.
The online travel company is aiming for 2026, with investors eyeing earnings to gauge whether travel demand is cooling off or just shifting course.
This matters for Expedia. The company has ramped up its focus on partnerships. Its B2B arm supplies travel inventory and technology to airlines, travel agencies, and other institutional players—beyond the reach of its popular consumer-facing brands.
Expedia is projecting gross bookings of $127 billion to $129 billion for 2026 and expects revenue to hit somewhere between $15.6 billion and $16.0 billion. Both figures top what Wall Street had been expecting; LSEG data put analyst estimates at $125.95 billion for bookings and $15.69 billion for revenue. CEO Ariane Gorin told Reuters the company saw its highest-ever number of active travel agencies last quarter, while partners surged 70% during the Black Friday promotion. Gorin added that around 30% of bookings in the fourth quarter involved inventory with deals attached.
Expedia reported revenue of $3.547 billion for the quarter ended Dec. 31, an 11% increase. Adjusted earnings landed at $3.78 per share. B2B gross bookings jumped 24%, well ahead of the 5% gain in direct-to-consumer bookings. For the first quarter, Expedia is guiding for gross bookings from $34.6 billion to $35.2 billion, with revenue targeted between $3.32 billion and $3.37 billion. The company set a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share, payable March 26 to shareholders of record March 5, and said it bought back approximately 9 million shares totaling $1.7 billion in 2025.
Travel stocks diverged after the bell. Shares of Airbnb jumped about 5% after the company projected first-quarter revenue above analyst targets and highlighted resilient demand for higher-end rentals. But Airbnb flagged a slowdown from travelers looking for budget options.
Thursday brought losses across equities, with the Nasdaq down close to 2% and the S&P 500 off by 1.6%. Tech stocks took the hardest blow as investors awaited January’s U.S. consumer price index, due Friday. “We see this as a ‘prove it’ year for AI,” said Jack Herr, primary investment analyst at GuideStone Funds. Reuters
Expedia’s forecast beat the Street, but the stock was all over the place—sharp moves, then a late fade. Whatever the company had to say got drowned out by the broader market’s churn, at least this day.
Investors are eyeing whether the partner segment’s faster growth can keep offsetting softer results from the consumer side. Another question: will improved margins hold up as the company steps up its marketing and product spend?
If inflation sticks around or shoppers pull back, travel demand can slip. Heavy discounting by Expedia eats into margins. And the pressure isn’t letting up—competition from other online travel agencies remains, plus suppliers keep pushing for more direct bookings on their own sites.
Friday’s in the spotlight for major inflation data. Expedia is turning attention to early 2026 bookings and how they’re tracking against Q1 targets. There’s also a fresh dividend—March 5 marks the record date, with the payout scheduled for March 26.
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