Post Earnings Coverage as Priceline’s Q4 Bottom-line Surged 32% Y-o-Y; Beat Forecasts

Upcoming AWS Coverage on Advisory Board Post-Earnings Results

LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / March 14, 2017 / Active Wall St. announces its post-earnings coverage on The Priceline Group Inc. (NASDAQ: PCLN). The Company disclosed its financial results for the fourth quarter fiscal 2016 (Q4 FY16) and full year fiscal 2016 (FY16) on February 27, 2017. The Norwalk, Connecticut-based Company’s quarterly total revenues and non-GAAP EPS surged 17.4% and 32% y-o-y, respectively; both outperforming market consensus estimates. Register with us now for your free membership at:

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Also trading within the Business Services industry as Priceline Group, The Advisory Board Co. (NASDAQ: ABCO), reported on February 28, 2017, its financial results for Q4 and twelve-month period ended December 31, 2016. AWS will be initiating a research report on Advisory Board in the coming days.

Today, AWS is promoting its earnings coverage on PCLN; touching on ABCO. Get our free coverage by signing up to:

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Earnings Reviewed

During the quarter ended on December 31, 2016, Priceline’s total revenues increased to $2.35 billion from $2.00 billion recorded at the end of Q4 FY15. Total revenue numbers for Q4 FY16 topped market consensus estimates of $2.33 billion. The Company’s agency revenue rose to $1.74 billion in Q4 FY16 from $1.40 billion in Q4 FY15. Furthermore, advertising and other revenues increased during Q4 FY16 to $171.94 million from $153.49 million in Q4 FY15. However, Merchant revenues were down to $439.82 million in Q4 FY16 from $445.78 million in Q4 FY15.

The online booking service provider’s net income increased to $673.91 million, or $13.47 per diluted share, in Q4 FY16 from $504.27 million, or $10.00 per diluted share, in Q4 FY15. Meanwhile, the Company’s non-GAAP net income surged during Q4 FY16 to $710.85 million, or $14.21 per diluted share, from $540.65 million, or $10.73 per diluted share, in the previous year’s same quarter. Wall Street had expected the Company to report non-GAAP net income of $13.06 per diluted share.

In FY16, Priceline’s total revenue came in at $10.74 billion compared to $9.22 billion in the previous year. The Company reported net income of $2.13 billion, or $42.65 per diluted share, in FY16 versus net income $2.55 billion, or $49.45 per diluted share, in FY15. Furthermore, the Company’s non-GAAP net income during FY16 was $3.29 billion, or $65.63 per diluted share, compared to $2.68 billion, or $51.92 per diluted share, in FY15.

Operational Metrics

For the reported quarter, the Company’s GAAP and non-GAAP gross profit came in at $2.28 billion, up from $1.88 billion in the prior year’s comparable quarter. The Company reported operating income of $790.36 million during Q4 FY16 compared to $657.90 million in Q4 FY15. The Company’s adjusted EBITDA for Q4 FY16 stood at $868.62 million compared to $714.65 million in Q4 FY15. Furthermore, the Company’s adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of non-GAAP gross profit improved to 38.2% in Q4 FY16 from 38.0% in the prior year’s corresponding quarter.

Priceline’s gross booking rose 25.8% y-o-y to $15.11 billion in Q4 FY16. Agency’s gross booking in the reported quarter grew 25.5% y-o-y to $12.98 billion, while Merchant gross booking was up by 27.8% y-o-y to $2.13 billion in Q4 FY16. The Company sold 129.7 million room nights during Q4 FY16, up 31.0% y-o-y. Rental Car Days sales rose 14.04% during the quarter ended December 31, 2016, to14.0 million. However, airline ticket sales fell 4.3% y-o-y to 1.6 million in Q4 FY16.

Cash Flow & Balance Sheet

During Q4 FY16, Priceline’s net cash provided by operating activities were $1.11 billion, up from $881.07 million in Q4 FY15. The Company’s free cash flow during Q4 FY16 came in at $1.05 billion versus $833.79 million in Q4 FY15. At the close of books in the reported quarter, Priceline had $2.08 billion in cash and cash equivalents compared to $1.48 billion at the close of books on December 31, 2015. Furthermore, the Company reported long-term debt amounting to $6.17 billion as on December 31, 2016, marginally up from $6.16 billion as on December 31, 2015.

Share Repurchase

During FY16, the Company bought back 763,000 shares of its common stock for $1 billion. Furthermore, the Company’s Board of Directors has recently approved a new share repurchase authorization of up to 2 billion of its common stock, which has increased the total open stock repurchase authorization to about $4 billion.

Outlook

In its guidance for Q1 FY17, Priceline’s expects GAAP gross profit growth in the range of 9.5% to 14.5%. GAAP net income for the upcoming quarter is projected to be between $7.50 per share and $7.90 per share. Meanwhile, non-GAAP net income during Q1 FY17 is estimated to be in the $8.25 to $8.65 per share range. Furthermore, adjusted EBITDA for Q1 FY17 is anticipated to be between $550 million and $580 million.

Stock Performance

On Monday, March 13, 2017, the stock closed the trading session at $1,767.12, slightly up 0.73% from its previous closing price of $1,754.24. A total volume of 325.64 thousand shares have exchanged hands. Priceline Group’s stock price surged 14.11% in the last three months, 24.98% in the past six months, and 33.18% in the previous twelve months. Furthermore, on a year to date basis, the stock soared 20.54%. Shares of the company have a PE ratio of 41.44 and have a market capitalization of $86.66 billion.

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