Airbnb Inc. (NASDAQ:ABNB) beat revenue and profit estimates in the fourth quarter, despite a resurgence of Covid-19 infections, heading into 2022 even stronger than before the pandemic.

Although the San Francisco-based company was initially hit by the pandemic, Airbnb rebounded as people took longer trips closer to home to work remotely. Since then, the trend has continued with non-urban gross nights" booked up about 45% in the fourth quarter versus 2019.

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During the extended trading session yesterday, the results pushed the shares up more than 7% and finally closed up 6.1% at $180.07.

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During the quarter, Airbnb reported 73.4 million Nights & Experiences Booked, growing 59% compared to the same period last year. Gross booking value (GBV) advanced 91% to $11.3 billion, while the Average Daily Rates (ADR) increased 20% year-over-year to $154 in the quarter.

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Furthermore, Airbnb's full-year fiscal 2021 revenue jumped 77% to $6 billion, and diluted loss stood at $0.57 per share, advancing significantly from its FY20 diluted loss of $16.12 per share.

OUTLOOK FY22 Q1

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Airbnb forecasts revenue between $1.41 billion and $1.48 in the first quarter of 2022, reflecting a marginal fall over its previous quarter due to the seasonally long lead times for Q1 Nights & Experiences Booked. In addition, the company expects its first positive adjusted EBITDA in the first quarter due to improvements in cost structure and higher ADRs.

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Based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations, the sustainability of the stock's immediate price gains will heavily rely on management's commentary on the earnings call.

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Airbnb CFO David Stephenson commented saying, "Nearly two years into the pandemic, it is now clear that we are undergoing the biggest change to travel since the advent of commercial flying... For the first time ever, millions of people can now live anywhere.”

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PRICE TARGET

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The online vacation rental hub is both a market disruptor and industry leader, with more rooms listed than the top five international hotel chains combined, and has an extremely strong brand image.

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Currently, Airbnb has a Hold consensus rating based on 3 Buys and 9 Holds. The average Airbnb price target of $186.6 implies 3.63% upside potential to current levels.

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Over the past year, the stock gained 6.4%.

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To invest in Airbnb stock visit MEXEM.

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