Despegar.com (DESP) Q3 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Achieved record Adjusted EBITDA of $48M, up 94% year-over-year, and revenue of $194M, up 9% as reported and 53% FX neutral, driven by strong demand, commercial execution, and recovery in Argentina.

• Take rate reached a record 14.6%, supported by higher package sales and innovative payment solutions.

• B2B segment grew robustly with new partnerships and SaaS initiatives, including the SOFIA AI assistant and first licensing deal with Karisma Hotels.

• Operating cash flow increased to $26.6M, with total cash rising to $220M despite dividend payments and factoring expenses.

• Loyalty program membership grew 50% year-over-year to 30M, with app-based transactions reaching 51% of total bookings.

Financial highlights

• Gross bookings reached $1.3B, up 35% year-over-year FX neutral but down slightly as reported due to FX headwinds.

• Gross profit margin hit a record 73.8%, with gross profit of $143.1M, up 18.7% year-over-year.

• Adjusted net income surged 309% year-over-year to $36.1M; adjusted EPS rose to $0.34 from $0.01.

• Adjusted EBITDA margin reached a record 24.8%, up 1,089 bps year-over-year.

• Operating income more than doubled to $36.6M from $15.3M year-over-year.

Outlook and guidance

• Maintains full-year revenue guidance of at least $760M, representing at least 8% year-over-year growth.

• Raises adjusted EBITDA forecast to at least $170M, a 47% year-over-year increase.

• Expects continued margin expansion and strong Q4 performance, despite ongoing FX headwinds.