Hostelworld reports half-year revenue fall of 9%

Irish travel website Hostelworld said on Tuesday that its expectations for the full-year are unchanged, despite a challenging market backdrop.

In the six months to June 30th, revenue fell 9 per cent to €40.2 million as the average booking value dropped 6 per cent to €11.8 million. Losses narrowed to €5.5 million, from €14.6 million in the same period in 2015. Adjusted earnings (ebitda) for the half year were €10.1 million.

Hostelworld brand bookings grew by 16 per cent, with group bookings from not-paid-for channels increasing to 61 per cent of the total.

Mobile-app bookings

Hostelworld said it achieved higher commission bookings from its Elevate product, which increased to 28 per cent of the group’s total, up from 17 per cent in the same period in 2015. Bookings from mobile devices grew to 45 per cent, up from 36 per cent in 2015, while mobile-app bookings accounted for 26 per cent of the total, up from 19 per cent in 2015.

Chief executive Feargal Mooney said: “The core Hostelworld brand has delivered strong growth in the first half of the year against a background of more challenging market conditions, particularly in Europe as a consequence of a number of terrorist attacks in key European destinations.”

Trading during the key months of July and August was “in line with our expectations, underpinned by the strength of our brand and platform”, Mr Mooney said, adding that Hostelworld would continue to manage risks posed by the impact of terrorist attacks and uncertainty surrounding Brexit. The company’s expectations for the full year were “unchanged”.

In a note, brokers at Davy Stockbrokers said the results “read positively”and it expected the market to react positively.

Hostelworld raised more than €180 million from its initial public offering on the Dublin and London stock exchanges in November 2015.