Worldwide: Expedia Group has revealed its vacation rental business reported a boost to its revenue growth following the rebranding of its Bellevue unit, according to Bloomberg.
Bellevue, based in Washington, reported a 17 per cent growth in revenue to $3.15 billion in the three-month period leading up to 30 June. The confirmation marked growing confidence in Expedia’s fastest-growing travel category after consecutive financial quarters of decline and exceeded the 14 per cent growth in the previous three months when it changed its divisional name to Vrbo from HomeAway.
As popularity grows rapidly in the alternative accommodations space, Expedia has sought to invest heavily in its rental unit as a way of competing with other large home-sharing players such as Airbnb and Booking.com.
According to Bloomberg, analysts and investors see Vrbo as Expedia’s most likely bet for potential growth in the coming years in the space.
In the results published on Thursday in New York, shares in Expedia fluctuated during extended trading, rising by 3.56 per cent before closing at their highest point this year at $138.21.
Expedia also confirmed gross bookings rose by nine per cent during the second quarter of the year.
The adjusted earnings prior to taking into account interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were $568 million. Furthermore, earnings per share climbed to $1.77.
The deceleration in vacation rental revenue growth in the previous two quarters was partly attributed to the streamlining of Expedia’s home rental brands and services, which consequently lowered its websites in Google’s overall search results, according to CEO Mark Okerstrom.
Okerstrom added that he believed growth in the Vrbo division would continue to be steady until the time comes for Expedia to drive more consumers to its newest sites.
For more information, visit the Expedia Group website here.
