TRVG Q4 2022 Earnings

Call Details

• Call Title: Trivago Q4 2022 Earnings Call
• Date: February 8, 2023 at 1:15 PM UTC
• Management Team:
  • Axel Hefer (Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director)
  • Matthias Tillmann (Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director)

Call Summary

Financial Performance

• Full-year 2022 revenue increased 48% year-over-year to €535M.
• Full-year adjusted EBITDA, excluding impairment charges, reached a record €107.5M, up 210% year-over-year.
• Impairment charges recorded in Q2 and Q3 2022 totaled €184.6M and contributed to a full-year net loss of €127.2M.
• Q4 referral revenue grew 21% year-over-year and Q4 adjusted EBITDA was €22.6M, up 15% year-over-year.
• Net income in Q4 decreased by €4.8M to €10.4M, which management attributed primarily to the non-recurrence of a €12M COVID subsidy recognized in Q4 2021.
• Cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments increased to €293.9M as of December 31, 2022, up €37.5M from the beginning of the year.

Guidance

• The company expects full-year 2023 adjusted EBITDA to exceed its pre-COVID (2019) adjusted EBITDA level.
• Trivago expects to increase brand marketing investments in 2023 relative to 2022 and has already restarted selected brand TV campaigns late in the quarter.
• Quarterly operational expenses excluding advertising and share-based compensation are expected to be roughly in line with Q4 2022 levels going forward.
• The company expects to continue to generate positive free cash flows in 2023 and will explore ways to return capital to shareholders.
• Investment to scale direct hotel connectivity via the UBIO partnership is expected to remain in line with Q4 2022 incremental costs while ramping coverage.
• Timing and magnitude of regulatory impacts such as the DMA are uncertain, and any effects are not quantified for 2023.