Consumer travel business delivers solid results in the face of headwinds.
Cost-of-living pressures and a softer domestic travel market have seen Webjet Group bookings drop by 7% to $1.53 million for the year to 31 March when compared to the previous 12-month period.
Total transaction value for the group was down by 6% to $1.5 billion, while revenue also sustained a minor hit, decreasing by 3% to $139.7 million.
Encouragingly, EBITDA held steady for the company, up 1% to $39.4 million, and expenses were also trimmed by 10%, creating a healthy cash reserve of $118.1 million to bolster an existing revolving credit access of $20 million.
Webjet OTA delivered a slight decline in EBITDA, posting a result of $51.6 million.
The slide in domestic bookings for the OTA division was offset by higher margins enjoyed during the period.
Meanwhile, Webjet Group’s online vehicle rentals product GoSee appears to have been rebranded to Cars & Motorhomes, with the latest report referencing the division as “formerly GoSee”.
The brand saw its bookings shrink by 7% on the back of a softer domestic flight market in Australia and New Zealand.
Inflationary impacts and higher headcount costs at Trip Ninja saw its EBITDA plunge by 17%, with Webjet pointing to continued investment on expanding the brand’s technology.
In further news, dividends are anticipated to kick back in for FY26 through a distribution model of between 40%-60% of underlying net profit after tax.
The results arrive at time of high intrigue for Webjet Group, which has recently declined a takeover offer from BGH Capital.
As a result of the recent acquisition interest, the board has deferred the implementation of any capital management initiatives.
More details in today’s issue of Travel Daily.