Priceline.com had revenues in the 2nd quarter of $603.7 million, a 17.5% increase over a year ago. The Company’s international operations contributed revenues in the 2nd quarter of $197.6 million, a 20.1% increase versus a year ago (approximately 38% growth on a local currency basis). Priceline.com’s gross profit for the 2nd quarter was $305.2 million, a 20.3% increase from the prior year. The Company’s international operations contributed gross profit in the 2nd quarter of $196.6 million, a 20.2% increase versus a year ago (approximately 38% growth on a local currency basis). The Company’s operating income in 2nd quarter 2009 was $109.4 million, a 35.1% increase from the prior year. Priceline.com had GAAP net income for the 2nd quarter of $67.0 million or $1.38 per diluted share, which compares to $49.8 million or $1.00 per diluted share in the same period a year ago.
Pro forma EBITDA for the 2nd quarter 2009 was $126.2 million, an increase of 24.6% over a year ago. Pro forma net income in the 2nd quarter was $99.0 million or $2.02 per diluted share, compared to $1.55 per share a year ago.
“Despite a difficult economic climate, leisure travel demand for the summer peak season has been stronger than expected, driven in part by the availability of compelling discounts,” said priceline.com President and Chief Executive Officer Jeffery H. Boyd. “Priceline.com’s 2nd quarter performance reflects the impact of improving demand, but also shows the impact of lower year over year unit prices. Priceline.com continued to gain market share globally in the 2nd quarter as worldwide hotel room night reservations grew 44%, reflecting solid performance in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Airline ticket sales grew 14% despite fee reductions introduced by our competitors during this period to compete with our low price positioning, and growth in rental car days was steady at 15%. Internationally, our hotel business experienced gross travel bookings growth of 14%, or approximately 32% on a local currency basis.”
Looking forward, Mr. Boyd said, “Unemployment and the global economic downturn continue to affect travel spending, particularly high yield business travel, which places considerable strain on travel suppliers. Suppliers have responded with promotions and discounts to spur leisure demand and we have offered distribution and advertising support for those efforts, which we believe has helped bolster occupancy and load factors. Despite significant decreases in pricing, priceline.com performed well in the first two quarters of this year and we believe our brands and service offerings have resonated with leisure travelers looking for the best value for their trips. In the 3rd quarter, we intend to continue to invest in expansion of our international hotel platform, integration initiatives and marketing of our brands in an effort to offer consumers the best travel value and to offer suppliers value as a unique and efficient distribution channel.”
Forward Guidance
Priceline.com said it was targeting the following for 3rd quarter 2009:
· Year-over-year increase in total gross travel bookings of approximately 20% - 26%.
· Year-over-year increase in international gross travel bookings of approximately 21% - 29% (an increase of approximately 30% - 39% on a local currency basis).
· Year-over-year increase in domestic gross travel bookings of approximately 20%.
· Year-over-year increase in revenue of approximately 19% to 23%.
· Year-over-year increase in gross profit of approximately 23% to 27%.
· Pro forma EBITDA of approximately $178 million to $188 million.
· Pro forma net income of between $2.70 and $2.85 per diluted share.
The Company noted that because of the uncertainty of consumer behavior as a result of the worldwide recession, its actual performance during the 3rd quarter 2009 against the guidance above continued to be subject to greater variability than it had been in the past.
About Priceline.com® Incorporated
Priceline.com Incorporated (Nasdaq: PCLN - News) www.priceline.com provides online travel services in 29 languages in 78 countries in Europe, North America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Included in the priceline.com family of companies is Booking.com, a leading international online hotel reservation service, priceline.com, a leading U.S. online travel service for value-conscious leisure travelers, and Agoda.com, an Asian online hotel reservation service. Priceline.com believes that Booking.com is Europe’s largest and fastest growing hotel reservation service, with a network of affiliated Web sites. Booking.com operates in over 70 countries in 24 languages and offers its customers access to over 71,000 participating hotels worldwide.
In the U.S., priceline.com gives customers more ways to save on their airline tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars, vacation packages and cruises than any other Internet travel service. In addition to getting great published prices, leisure travelers can narrow their searches using priceline.com’s TripFilter advanced search technology, customize their search activity through priceline.com’s Inside Track features, create packages to save even more money, and take advantage of priceline.com’s famous Name Your Own Price® service, which can deliver the lowest prices available.
Priceline.com operates the following travel websites: Travelweb.com, Lowestfare.com, RentalCars.com and BreezeNet.com. Priceline.com also licenses its business model to independent licensees.
