Many in the West might know it by the name of Trip.com Group Limited (Nasdaq: TCOM/SEHK:9961), however, Ctrip changed its English name to the current one in 2019 after acquiring the namesake website in 2017, likely in a bid to expand further abroad. In China, it is still mostly referred to as Ctrip (携程).
In early December, it was reported that the online travel agency (OTA) saw its share prices surge in Nasdaq, growing over 74% in 2024 and is now valued at 40.96 billion USD. The reason, as you might have expected, is because of the strong results it showed in its latest financial report. In Q3 2024, Ctrip earned 15.9 billion RMB (2.19 billion USD) in revenue, a 15.6% year-on-year (YoY) increase and a 24.3% growth from the previous quarter. The quarterly revenue was also 2% higher than market expectations.
42.8% of its income was from hotels and accommodation, which was 6.8 billion RMB (935.31 million USD) in Q3, a 22% YoY growth. 35.5% was transport ticketing at 5.7 billion RMB (784.01 million USD), which increased by 5% YoY. Most importantly, “other business” grew a whopping 40.87% YoY for the group, earning 1.23 billion RMB (169.18 million USD). Ctrip already earned 15 billion RMB (2.07 billion USD) in net profit in the first 3 quarters of this year, up from 10 billion for the entirety of 2023.
As travel in China recovers, OTAs like Ctrip have been benefiting while facing the challenges posed by social media platforms such as Douyin and Xiaohongshu (RED), who are gradually expanding into the travel market. As the OTA that owns 54.7% market share in China in 2023, Ctrip is developing overseas business via its international brand, the aforementioned Trip.com. Q3 saw its international flight and hotel bookings at 120% of 2019 levels and overseas business growing 60% YoY in Q3 2024. How the group will navigate competition against the likes of Booking.com and Expedia, as well as RED at home is certainly worth watching in 2025.
