CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. 84% of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs with this provider. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Brokers buy Airbnb ahead of expected tourism boom

By David Burrows

10:10, 21 April 2022

Airbnb customer browsing the site
Airbnb eventually listed in December 2020 – Photo: Alamy

Go back 14 years and Airbnb (ABNB) didn’t even exist but today the home rental specialist is a global brand and a well-watched Nasdaq name.

After being hit hard by Covid-19 with hosts not being able to rent out their properties, the company is now in a much better place as lockdowns become a thing of the past and tourists pack their cases and passports.

On paper the climate looks good for Airbnb and analysts appear to agree; Citigroup has just upgraded the stock from a ‘neutral’ to a ‘buy’ rating. Citi now has a $200 price target on the stock. This represents a potential 19% upside from the current price of $168. The general consensus from analysts is positive – with 15 out of 32 rating the stock a buy, 16 rating it ‘hold’ and just one rating it a sell.

In March 2020, when the pandemic hit, borders closed, travel stopped and Airbnb’s business declined by nearly 80%.  It was forced to put its IPO on hold.

Its stock price has been all over the place since its eventual IPO in December 2020. Airbnb’s initial public offering was priced at $68 a share, with the company bringing in $3.5bn in return for selling 51.5 million shares. It led to a company valuation of $47bn and was the largest IPO that year.

Since then, its stock price has hit a high of $212.68 in February 2021 and a low at $134.31 in July 2021 before recovering to the current level.

What is your sentiment on ABNB?

118.65
Bullish
or
Bearish
Vote to see Traders sentiment!

Airbnb (ABNB) share price

What’s to like about Airbnb?

Firstly, it is essentially an internet stock that is linked to travel and hospitality. The accommodation hosts are responsible for any cleaning, maintenance and liaising/follow up with visitors. Airbnb is a global platform that makes instant bookings possible.

In terms of competition, Airbnb has a very strong brand and is more familiar to people than other rivals such as Vrbo, Flipkey and Homestay (which is a bit different as visitors stay with the host rather than rent from them).

True, there are other big brands such as Expedia (EXPE) and Booking.com (BKNG) that offer, among other things, the option for owners to list their property for rental but they are not as focused in one area.

It could be argued that there are few barriers to entry in this field but established brands with global presence have a distinct advantage.  

US30

33,768.00 Price
+2.020% 1D Chg, %
Long position overnight fee -0.0255%
Short position overnight fee 0.0032%
Overnight fee time 21:00 (UTC)
Spread 13

US100

14,557.80 Price
+0.640% 1D Chg, %
Long position overnight fee -0.0255%
Short position overnight fee 0.0032%
Overnight fee time 21:00 (UTC)
Spread 3.0

HK50

19,165.50 Price
+3.480% 1D Chg, %
Long position overnight fee -0.0228%
Short position overnight fee 0.0009%
Overnight fee time 21:00 (UTC)
Spread 30.5

DE40

16,061.70 Price
+1.080% 1D Chg, %
Long position overnight fee -0.0200%
Short position overnight fee -0.0022%
Overnight fee time 21:00 (UTC)
Spread 3.0

And Airbnb has purposely focused on acquisitions to build its presence globally and further boost recognition – the focus has been more on growth than profitability.  

 

Profitable track record?

The recently listed business may have much to offer investors but a track record of consistent profitability is something that is simply not there yet.

Though it is in essence a tech stock, it still faces similar pressures to many more traditional travel companies – for instance when travel stopped and borders closed, Airbnb guests needed to cancel their reservations, many of which were non-refundable.

Airbnb issued over $1bn in refunds. While this helped guests, it created problems for hosts. Hence, Airbnb committed to paying up to $250m to hosts affected by cancellations.

The company does face some headwinds, for instance several cities have introduced regulations in a bid to stop Airbnb driving up local rent prices.  

Most analysts, though, will be looking at Airbnb as operating in a market that for 2022 at least will enjoy a huge boost in bookings as tourist numbers soar post-lockdowns.

The question will be whether belt tightening as a result of rising inflation and the cost of living means a slowdown for Airbnb further down the line.   

Markets in this article

ABNB
Airbnb, Inc.
118.65 USD
6.32 +5.700%
ABNB
Airbnb, Inc.
118.65 USD
6.32 +5.700%
BKNG
Booking
2628.64 USD
82.63 +3.260%
BKNG
Booking
2628.64 USD
82.63 +3.260%
EXPE
Expedia
103.40 USD
4.58 +4.650%

Rate this article

Related reading

The difference between trading assets and CFDs
The main difference between CFD trading and trading assets, such as commodities and stocks, is that you don’t own the underlying asset when you trade on a CFD.
You can still benefit if the market moves in your favour, or make a loss if it moves against you. However, with traditional trading you enter a contract to exchange the legal ownership of the individual shares or the commodities for money, and you own this until you sell it again.
CFDs are leveraged products, which means that you only need to deposit a percentage of the full value of the CFD trade in order to open a position. But with traditional trading, you buy the assets for the full amount. In the UK, there is no stamp duty on CFD trading, but there is when you buy stocks, for example.
CFDs attract overnight costs to hold the trades (unless you use 1-1 leverage), which makes them more suited to short-term trading opportunities. Stocks and commodities are more normally bought and held for longer. You might also pay a broker commission or fees when buying and selling assets direct and you’d need somewhere to store them safely.
Capital Com is an execution-only service provider. The material provided on this website is for information purposes only and should not be understood as an investment advice. Any opinion that may be provided on this page does not constitute a recommendation by Capital Com or its agents. We do not make any representations or warranty on the accuracy or completeness of the information that is provided on this page. If you rely on the information on this page then you do so entirely on your own risk.

Still looking for a broker you can trust?

Join the 535.000+ traders worldwide that chose to trade with Capital.com

1. Create & verify your account 2. Make your first deposit 3. You’re all set. Start trading