Planes, Trains And Automobiles: Expedia To Benefit From Growth In All The Above

Argus analyst John Staszak initiated coverage of Expedia Inc (NASDAQ: EXPE) with a Buy rating and $178 price target.

Expedia shares were trading around $150 mid-day Wednesday.

“We expect Expedia to benefit from growth in online travel bookings for air, rail, cruise, hotel, rental car and vacation packages in Asia, Europe and the U.S.,” said Staszak in a note (see his track record here).

The analyst’s confidence in the company stems largely from the strong growth figures reported in its first quarter 2017 earnings report.

The company owns several online booking platforms, several of which showed strong double-digit earnings growth over the last year, including Trivago NV - ADR (NASDAQ: TRVG), up 62 percent, and HomeAway, up 30 percent. Both saw especially strong growth in Asia.

The company also benefits in the region thanks to its joint venture with Air Asia. Expedia’s air revenue increase 4 percent year-over-year. Staszak also sees China as a fast-growing, largely untapped market for the company.

Staszak believes Expedia’s global market share for travel bookings could rise from its 6 percent in 2016 to 9 percent by 2020.

Advertising and media revenue was also notable, growing 47 percent in the first quarter of 2017.

Shares of Expedia are up 32.5 percent to $150.30 this year, compared to the sector’s approximately 10 percent growth and the S&P 500’s 8.7 percent.

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