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The call presented a broadly positive operational and financial performance: robust top-line growth, strong adjusted EBITDA expansion, record share repurchases, progress on Connected Trip and AI initiatives, and continued U.S. and Asia momentum. However, material near-term headwinds from the Middle East conflict (elevated cancellations, transit disruptions), some marketing deleverage, and guidance uncertainty temper the outlook. On balance the company demonstrated resilience and clear strategic progress while actively managing costs and capital allocation amid geopolitical volatility.
Booking guided that its planning assumes the direct and indirect impact from the Middle East conflict continues through the end of June (they estimate roughly a ~3‑point headwind in Q2), and for Q2 they expect room nights to grow 2–4% and gross bookings, revenue and adjusted EBITDA each to grow 4–6% (assuming recent FX, including EUR/USD $1.16, which they estimate will add ~2 percentage points to Q2 reported growth). For the full year 2026 the company expects gross bookings to be up high‑single‑digits to low‑double‑digits, revenue up high‑single‑digits, adjusted EBITDA to grow slightly faster than revenue with adjusted EBITDA margins expanding 0–25 basis points, and adjusted EPS to be up low‑to‑mid‑teens; they also estimate FX will boost full‑year reported growth by roughly +2 ppts (gross bookings), +1.5 ppts (revenue) and +1 ppt (adjusted EBITDA and adjusted EPS). Management reiterated that the Q2 guidance assumes impacts through June followed by a second‑half recovery and reaffirmed a longer‑term constant‑currency ambition of at least 8% gross bookings growth, 8% revenue growth and 15% adjusted EPS growth.
Booked 338 million room nights in Q1, up 6% year-over-year (estimated ~8% ex-Middle East conflict impact of ~2 percentage points). U.S. room-night growth accelerated to the low teens for the fourth consecutive quarter; Asia room-night growth in the high single digits with intra-Asia travel in the low double digits.
Q1 gross bookings of $53.8 billion increased 15% year-over-year (about 8% on a constant-currency basis). Revenue was $5.5 billion, up 16% year-over-year (about 10% constant currency).
Adjusted EBITDA was approximately $1.3 billion, up 19% year-over-year (exceeding the high end of guidance). Adjusted EPS was $1.14, up 14% year-over-year, supported by a ~4% lower average share count.
Total merchant gross bookings increased 24% year-over-year and represented ~72% of total gross bookings (mix up ~5 percentage points). Airline tickets rose 28% and attractions tickets grew ~25% in Q1.
Connected transactions grew in the high teens and now represent a low-double-digit share of Booking.com's transactions (growing ~3x faster than Booking.com's total transaction growth). Genius Levels 2 and 3 made up over 30% of active base and accounted for a high-50% share of room nights over the last four quarters.
Early AI initiatives (e.g., Priceline’s Penny, Booking.com natural-language search) show encouraging conversion and engagement signals in small tests. Agoda realized a double-digit year-over-year reduction in customer-service cost per booking driven by AI-assisted automation.
Completed a record $3.6 billion of share repurchases in Q1 (total capital return ~ $4.0 billion including dividend), while generating about $3.1 billion of free cash flow in the quarter. Ending cash & investments were $16.5 billion.
Adjusted fixed operating expenses grew in the low single digits on a normalized basis; the company remains on track for $500–$550 million of in-year savings from its 2026 transformation program and incurred only $25 million of transformation costs in Q1.
Welcome to Booking Holdings First Quarter 2026 Conference Call. Booking Holdings would like to remind everyone that this call may contain forward-looking statements, which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are not guaranteed of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual results may differ materially from those expressed, implied or forecasted in any such forward-looking statements. Expressions of future goals or expectations and similar expressions reflecting something other than the historical fact are intended to identify forward-looking statements. For a list of factors that could cause Booking Holdings' actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements, please refer to the safe harbor statement in Booking Holdings' earnings press release as well as Booking Holdings' most recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Unless required by law, Booking Holdings undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. A copy of Booking Holdings' earnings press release is available in the For Investors section of Booking Holdings' website, www.bookingholdings.com.
Booking Holdings intends to use the Investor Relations page of its website, ir.bookingholdings.com, to disclose material information for purposes of the SEC's Regulation Fair Disclosure....