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Booking Earnings Top Estimates as Late Easter Boosts Travel

Booking Earnings Top Estimates as Late Easter Boosts Travel

(Bloomberg) -- Booking Holdings Inc. reported second-quarter revenue and profit that topped analysts’ estimates, buoyed by a late Easter holiday that boosted travel demand.

Room nights booked at Booking went up by 12% in the three months ended June 30, faster than the 10% growth in the previous quarter.

Norwalk, Connecticut-based Booking has been pumping resources into the alternative accommodations segment, which has been a star-performer for Booking, growing faster than the overall business and helping it compete with Airbnb Inc. Earlier this year, Booking, formerly known as Priceline, said the segment, which includes home-share listings, now makes up 20% of its total revenue. The company, which is most well-known in Europe, released a fresh brand campaign in the U.S. in February in an attempt to drive customers toward its non-hotel listings. Booking also runs popular travel sites Kayak, and CheapFlights, among others.

Revenue increased 8.8% to $3.85 billion, the company said in a statement. That beat the average analyst estimates of $3.75 billion. Profit excluding some costs was $23.59 per share, compared with projections for $22.66.

Booking’s shares rose 5% in extended trading. The company’s stock has gained about 5% so far this year, reaching a high of $1,966.85 on July 26.

To contact the reporters on this story: Olivia Carville in New York at ocarville1@bloomberg.net;Simran Jagdev in Toronto at sjagdev1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Molly Schuetz at mschuetz9@bloomberg.net, Andrew Pollack

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