Hostelworld Group PLC has said profit should meet expectations this year after strong demand for travel to Asia and Central America helped fuel booking growth.
Net bookings ticked up 7% to 5.4 million over the nine months to September, the company reported on Tuesday, fuelled by record performances in Asia and Central America.
Average booking values were down by 9% at €13.54 (£11.30) though, as a higher proportion of bookings were made in Asia and solo traveller numbers increased.
This meant net revenue fell by 2% to €72.3 million over the period, Hostelworld said.
Adjusted margins improved from 19% to 25% in the meantime as reduced marketing expenses fed through to lower costs, aiding a 28% increase in pre-tax earnings to €17.8 million for the year so far.
Hostelworld said adjusted pre-tax earnings for the full year would be in line with market expectations for €21.6 million as a result.
“I am pleased with our performance year to date, which has been driven by strong consumer demand from Europe, the UK and North America to low-cost destinations in Asia and Central America,” chief executive Gary Morrison said.
Hostelworld said it also returned to a net cash position of €0.9 million as expected over the year so far, after all bank debts had been repaid.
“We are actively reviewing our capital allocation policy and will provide an update in conjunction with our full-year results,” the company added.