10-Q · August 4, 2026
Booking Holdings delivered an 8.1% year-over-year revenue increase to $7.352B, approximately 34.0% operating margin, and $2.54 diluted EPS, ahead of the $2.44 consensus estimate. Merchant revenue and gross bookings were…
Earnings analysis · 10-Q
BKNG earnings analysis
Filed November 3, 2026 · Our reading of the company's report
The latest report
Booking Holdings delivered solid underlying operating growth, with gross bookings up 9.6%, room nights up 6.7%, and merchant revenue up 14.1%, while sequential operating margin and EPS improved. However, reported…
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Booking Holdings delivered solid underlying operating growth, with gross bookings up 9.6%, room nights up 6.7%, and merchant revenue up 14.1%, while sequential operating margin and EPS improved. However, reported revenue declined 1.3% year over year because of the $900 million FTC matter, and regulatory, geopolitical, merchant-cost, and customer-acquisition pressures remain material. Liquidity and operating cash flow were strong, but the company also deployed $9.9 billion for share repurchases in the first nine months.
Gross and operating margin
How much of each revenue dollar the business keeps.
One point per quarterly or annual filing. Both margins are shares of that report's revenue.
From revenue to operating profit
Where each $100 of revenue went in this report.
Cost of sales, operating expenses, and what remained. Figures are rounded to whole dollars.
Where revenue came from
The business segments reported by the company.
Shares of the segments disclosed in this filing, largest first.
How we read each report
Our analysis across the last few reports.
Our model's reading of each filing, not the share price or the market's reaction. Annual and quarterly reports each occupy one position.
Reported figures
- Earnings per share
- $3.61
What stood out
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Bookings growth despite FTC revenue charge
Total revenue was $8.893 billion, down 1.3% from $9.008 billion in the prior-year quarter but up approximately 21% from $7.35 billion in Q2 2026. The year-over-year decline primarily reflected the $900 million FTC matter.
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Strong gross-bookings and merchant growth
Total gross bookings increased 9.6% year over year to $54.461 billion, supported by 7% room-night growth and approximately 3% higher constant-currency ADRs. Merchant gross bookings grew 13.9% to $40.712 billion, while agency gross bookings declined 1.3% to $13.749 billion.
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Sequential margin and EPS improvement
Operating margin was approximately 38.4%, based on $3.418 billion of operating income implied by $8.893 billion of revenue and disclosed operating expenses, up from 34.0% in Q2 2026 but modestly below 38.7% in the prior-year quarter. Reported GAAP EPS was $3.61 versus $3.38 in the prior-year quarter and $2.53 in Q2 2026.
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Accommodation and flight volumes expanded
Room nights increased 6.7% year over year to 345 million, while flight tickets increased 19.4% to 21 million. Rental-car days declined 0.7% to 23 million, reflecting lower partner volume and travel disruption effects.
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Robust liquidity and operating cash flow
Nine-month operating cash flow increased to $8.071 billion from $7.919 billion. Cash, cash equivalents, and investments totaled $16.2 billion at September 30, 2026, including approximately $14.4 billion held by international subsidiaries.
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Aggressive capital returns continue
The company repurchased $9.9 billion of common stock during the first nine months and had $12.4 billion remaining under its authorization at September 30, 2026. Deferred merchant bookings increased to $6.5 billion, supporting liquidity but representing amounts largely subject to cancellation refunds.
What to watch
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FTC and regulatory exposure
The FTC matter reduced reported third-quarter and year-to-date revenue by $900 million and contributed to higher general and administrative expenses, which reached $338 million in the quarter, up 33.0% year over year. The filing identifies regulatory scrutiny and related proceedings as material contingencies.
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Geopolitical pressure on travel demand
The Middle East conflict continued to weigh on long-haul international demand, while elevated flight prices affected travel trends. Rental-car days fell 0.7% in the quarter and 4.1% for the first nine months, despite flight tickets rising 19.4% in the quarter.
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Merchant-cost and customer-acquisition pressure
Merchant bookings represented 75% of total gross bookings, up from 72% a year earlier, increasing personnel, payment-processing, chargeback, and fraud-related expenses. Management also expects SEO traffic to decline in the short to medium term, potentially requiring additional paid-marketing spending; quarterly marketing expense was $2.588 billion, up 10.6%.
Management's outlook
The 10-Q provides no explicit revenue or EPS guidance. Management expects the Transformation Program to reach approximately $650 million of annual run-rate savings, with most incremental savings above the $550 million level enabled at the end of 2025 realized in 2027; aggregate restructuring costs and accelerated investments are estimated at less than one times expected annual run-rate savings. Quantitative Q4 and full-year operating guidance was provided in the November 3, 2026 earnings release rather than this filing.
Earlier filings 4
10-Q · April 28, 2026
Booking Holdings reported a strong Q1 2026 with a total revenue of $5.53 billion, reflecting a 16% increase year-over-year, driven by growth in global room nights and merchant bookings despite headwinds from regional…
10-K · February 18, 2026
Booking Holdings reported full-year 2025 revenues of $26.9 billion and reports strategic progress on Gen AI, Connected Trip, payments, and record annual room nights. Operational performance was broadly stable with…
10-Q · October 28, 2025
Booking Holdings reported Q3 2025 revenue of $9,008 million, up $1,014 million (+12.7%) versus Q3 2024, and delivered diluted net income per share of $84.41, up $10.07 (+13.6%) year-over-year. Merchant revenue led the…
This is our reading of a public filing, not the filing itself. Analysis can contain errors; check the source document for full context.