What happened
The stock market was generally higher on Friday, but travel disruptor Airbnb (ABNB +1.24%) was a big outperformer. As of 10:45 a.m. EDT today, the stock had rocketed higher by nearly 12%.
So what
Airbnb had warned investors that the COVID delta variant would likely affect travelers' behavior in the third quarter. But the company's latest results show that it didn't hurt demand nearly as much as many experts feared.
Image source: Getty Images.
For starters, Airbnb reported the highest quarterly revenue and earnings figures in its history. Net income soared by 280% year over year, and nearly 80 million nights and experiences were booked on the platform in the third quarter alone. Revenue of $2.24 billion was 67% higher than in the third quarter of 2020. The company reported that booked nights and experiences were up 10% from pre-pandemic levels in North America in the quarter.
It's also worth mentioning that Airbnb's excellent numbers led to a wave of analyst upgrades, which is also likely helping to propel the stock higher today.
Now what
With a market cap of more than $125 billion after today's move, Airbnb might seem like a very expensive stock. But if the company can continue to grow rapidly and capitalize on its multitrillion-dollar addressable market opportunity in the travel industry, there could still be tremendous upside potential.
In the near term, international travel restrictions expiring in November could provide a nice boost to the company's growth in the fourth quarter and throughout 2022 as the world continues to gradually return to normal.
