Trainline PLC (LSE:TRN) hiked its full-year sales and earnings expectations as a result of strong industry recovery across Europe, including the resurgence of US travelers.
The online rail ticket provider predicted net ticket sales will now grow between 18% and 27% compared to fiscal 2020 (pre-Covid) when net ticket sales were £3.72bn.
In May, it had forecast net ticket sales to grow 3%-13% to a range of £3.8-£4.2bn.
The company now expects revenue of between 22% and 31% revenue growth over fiscal 2020, when it was £261mln.
Adjusted EBITDA is now expected to be 1.9% and 2.1% of net ticket sales, up from the previous forecast of £70-75mln in May. In 2020 EBITDA was £85mln.
For the first four months of the 2023 year to end-June, net ticket sales were up 16% over the same period in fiscal 2020 (pre-Covid), which the company said reflected a faster-than-expected recovery in rail passenger volume across Europe, and an increase in US inbound passengers, in a trading report.
"Not only is domestic rail travel rebounding at an impressive rate across Europe, but tourists are also returning strongly, with Americans leading the way," said Jody Ford, chief executive.
"With an increasing number of train carriers offering high-speed services across the Continent, the appetite for train travel is set to increase."
The shares jumped 21.5p to 342.4p in early trading on Wednesday.