Flight Centre records record TTV of $23.7 billion, underlying profit of $343.1 million.
Flight Centre has just released its financial figures for the year to 30 June, warning of softness in its Australian leisure business due to “internal and cyclical factors”.
The company’s $23.7 billion global TTV was up almost $2 billion on last year’s record figure, and overseas businesses generated more than half of Flight Centre’s TTV and pre-tax profit for the first time ever.
Despite issues in the local leisure business, the company noted that its online operations were growing TTV at more than 40% year-on-year and now comprised about $1.3 billion globally. There was also strong growth in Flight Centre’s home-based, flash sale and specialist businesses.
TTV growth outpaced revenue growth, which meant margins were squeezed and the overall underlying profit of $343.1 million was down about 10% on last year’s record figure.
Flight Centre said TTV at its flightcentre.com.au OTA site had jumped more than 50% per month since online booking fees were removed.
CEO Graham Turner said while he was disappointed that profit had declined, “we can be pleased with our achievements in some important areas and with some of the progress towards our longer term goals”. The company is paying a record dividend and he said Flight Centre was expecting a “gradual leisure sector recovery as the year progresses”.
Webjet profit up 28% for FY19.
Webjet has today reported a 27% uplift in its global TTV to $3.8 billion, with its statutory pre-tax profit jumping 28% to $74.7 million.
The company highlighted a 43% increase in EBITDA income to $124.6 million, noting that following the acquisition of JacTravel and Destinations of the World the WebBeds business is now its largest division across bookings, TTV and EBITDA.
The Webjet OTA “continues to outperform,” the company said, with flight bookings growing at about twice the rate of the underlying market. “Despite a tough domestic market in FY19 both TTV and EBITDA margins improved,” the company said.
CEO John Gucsic said the company continued to see significant opportunities for profitable growth within the WebBeds operations. “We are the #2 global player and yet still have less than 4% market share of the global B2B hotels market,” he said, with Webjet continuing to be on the lookout for acquisition opportunities.
More information in today’s issue of Travel Daily.