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2022 Was Another Record Year For Airbnb.

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Airbnb CEO and co-founder Brian Chesky has released the following (edited) Q4 2022 Shareholder Letter

2022 was another record year for Airbnb. Revenue of $8.4 billion grew 40% year over year (46% ex-FX). Net income was $1.9 billion—making 2022 our first profitable full year on a GAAP basis. Adjusted EBITDA was $2.9 billion while Free Cash Flow was $3.4 billion, growing 49% year over year.

Guest demand remained strong throughout 2022. All regions saw significant growth in 2022 as guests increasingly crossed borders and returned to cities on Airbnb.

Supply growth was also strong in 2022. We ended the year with 6.6 million global active listings, which is over 900,000 more listings than we had in the beginning of the year, excluding China. This growth was driven by our global network, where demand drives supply, as well as product innovations that continue to attract new Hosts.

Looking forward to 2023, we’re seeing strong demand in Q1, indicating that consumer confidence to travel remains high. This year, we’re focusing on three strategic priorities:
• Make hosting mainstream. If you’re reading this letter, you have likely traveled on Airbnb or know someone who has. We want hosting on Airbnb to be just as popular. To achieve this, we will continue to raise awareness around hosting, make it easier to get started, and provide even better tools for Hosts.

• Perfect the core service. We want people to love our service, and that means obsessing over every detail. Based on feedback from our guests and Hosts, we’re making a large number of upgrades to our service this year—improving community support, making it easier to find the right home for you, delivering greater value, and much more.

• Expand beyond the core. We have some big ideas for where to take Airbnb next, and this year we will build the foundation for future products and services that will provide incremental growth for years to come.

As we continue to innovate and grow, we’re excited to share this journey with you.

Q4 and Full-Year 2022 Financial Results
Here is a snapshot of our Q4 and full-year 2022 results:
• Q4 revenue of $1.9 billion was our highest fourth quarter ever. Revenue grew 24% year-over-year (31% ex-FX) driven by solid growth in Nights and Experiences Booked. For the full year 2022, revenue increased 40% year-over-year (46% ex-FX) to $8.4 billion driven by the increase in demand and Average Daily Rates (“ADR”).
• Q4 net income of $319 million was our most profitable fourth quarter ever. Net income improved by $264 million compared to Q4 2021 primarily due to our revenue growth and expense discipline.

In Q4 2022, we delivered a net income margin of 17%, up from 4% in Q4 2021. For the full year 2022, we generated $1.9 billion of net income—our first profitable full year. This compared to a net loss of $352 million for the full year 2021.

• Q4 Adjusted EBITDA of $506 million was a record fourth quarter. Adjusted EBITDA in Q4 2022 increased 52% compared to $333 million in Q4 2021. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 27% for Q4 2022, up from 22% in Q4 2021. For the full year 2022, Adjusted EBITDA margin was 35%, compared with 27% for full year 2021. This improvement in Adjusted EBITDA demonstrates the continued strength of our business and discipline in managing our cost structure.

• Q4 Free Cash Flow of $455 million was our highest Q4 ever. Q4 2022 net cash provided by operating activities was $463 million, up from $382 million in Q4 2021. The increase in cash flow was driven by revenue growth and net margin expansion. Our FCF for full year 2022 was $3.4 billion, representing a FCF margin of 41%, and year-over-year growth of 49%.2 With our Free Cash Flow, we repurchased $1.5 billion of our stock and reduced our fully diluted share count from 703 million at the end of 2021 to 694 million at the end of 2022.

Business Highlights
Our strong quarter was driven by the continuation of a number of positive business trends:

• Guest demand on Airbnb remained strong. Nights and Experiences Booked increased 20% in Q4 2022 compared to a year ago. In Q4 2022, we had our highest number of active bookers yet, demonstrating guests’ excitement to travel on Airbnb despite evolving macroeconomic uncertainties. Globally, we’ve now had 1.4 billion cumulative guest arrivals. And heading into 2023, we see a strong backlog for Q1 with longer lead times for bookings in Q4 2022 compared to a year ago.

• Guests increasingly returned to cities and crossed borders. Cross-border gross nights booked increased 49%, while high-density urban nights booked grew 22% compared to Q4 2021. While the business mix remains different from pre-pandemic levels, we’ve seen consistent growth in both areas. In Q4 2022, high-density urban nights booked was 51% of total gross nights booked (versus 59% in Q4 2019) and cross-border was 44% (versus 47% in Q4 2019). Globally, we saw cross-border travel to all regions increase in Q4 2022 from last year despite continued foreign currency volatility.

While Asia Pacific, which has historically been reliant on cross-border travel, has yet to return to 2019 levels, we see China’s recent removal of travel restrictions as an encouraging sign of continued recovery for the region.

• Guests continued to stay longer on Airbnb. Gross nights booked in Q4 2022 for more than a week are 40% higher than Q4 2019. Nights from long-term stays (28 nights or longer) remained stable from a year ago at 21% of total gross nights booked. We’ve seen guests across all regions and age groups use Airbnb for long-term stays.

• Supply on Airbnb grew by over 900,000 active listings. We ended 2022 with 6.6 million active listings—our highest yet. This was an increase of over 900,000 active listings, or 16% compared to 2021, excluding the removal of all mainland China listings in July 2022 based on our decision to close the domestic business in China.

Two factors drove this increase in supply. First, demand drives supply. Hosts are attracted to the supplemental income they can earn on Airbnb, which is often critical during times of inflation and recessionary concerns. Second, our product innovation is having an impact. Over the past two years, we’ve made it more attractive and easier to Host—including our most recent introduction of Airbnb Setup. And we’re not stopping there. We will continuously invest in growing our Host community and helping them succeed.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flows
For the three months ended December 31, 2022, we reported $463 million of net cash provided by operating activities and $455 million of FCF, compared to $382 million and $378 million, respectively, for the three months ended December 31, 2021.

The year-over-year increase in FCF was driven by revenue growth and margin expansion. For the full year ended December 31, 2022, we generated $3.4
billion of net cash provided by operating activities and $3.4 billion of FCF.

Unearned fees totaled $1.2 billion at the end of Q4 2022, compared to $1.2 billion at the end of Q3 2022 and $904 million at the end of Q4 2021.

As of December 31, 2022, we had $9.6 billion of cash, cash equivalents, marketable securities, and restricted cash. We also had $4.8 billion of funds held on behalf of guests as of December 31, 2022.

In August 2022, we announced that our Board of Directors approved a share repurchase program with authorization to purchase up to $2 billion of our Class A common stock at management’s discretion.

In 2022, we repurchased $1.5 billion of our Class A common stock. The share repurchase program will enable us to offset dilution from our employee stock programs.

Outlook
We are excited to see the continued strong demand in Q1 2023. We’re particularly encouraged by European guests booking their summer travel earlier this year, the market share gains we are seeing in Latin America, as well as the continued recovery within Asia Pacific.

We expect revenue of $1.75 billion to $1.82 billion in Q1 2023. This represents year-over-year growth of between 16% and 21% and on an ex-FX basis between 18% and 23%. We expect our implied take rate (defined as revenue divided by GBV) in Q1 2023 to be similar to Q1 2022. We anticipate that the implied take rate seasonality in 2023 will be similar to 2022.

In Q1 2022, travel was significantly impacted by the Omicron strain of COVID-19 in January and to a lesser extent the war in Ukraine during February, making the earlier part of the quarter an easier year-over-year comparison than the end. In Q1 2023, we expect Nights and Experiences Booked year-over-year growth to be nearly as strong as Q4 2022.

In Q1 2023, we anticipate slightly lower ADR than we had in Q1 2022. For the remainder of the year, we expect ADR will face increasing downward pressure from mix shift, as well as new and improved pricing and discounting tools. We will be introducing these tools this year and expect these changes to drive greater affordability and value for guests, support bookings growth, and therefore also help Hosts be more successful.

For the full year 2023, we expect to maintain the strong Adjusted EBITDA margin we delivered in 2022, as we offset the headwinds from lower ADR with incremental variable cost efficiencies and fixed cost discipline. In Q1 2023, we expect Adjusted EBITDA margin to be slightly down on a year-over-year basis due to changes in the timing of our brand marketing spend. Compared to Q1 2022, we expect sales and marketing in Q1 2023 will be approximately 150 basis points higher as a percent of revenue, but flat as a percent of revenue for the full year.

For More Information CLICK HERE

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Tyrone Wilson Returns to iCREATE LIMITED In Dramatic Fashion Played Out At Annual General Meeting

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iCreate Limited (“iCreate” or “Company”) recently held its Annual General Meeting (“AGM”) on Friday, November 24, 2023 for the financial year ended December 31, 2022. Upon the demand of a poll and after the ordinary and special resolutions were voted on by the shareholders, the results of each resolution are as follows: –

Resolution No. 1
“THAT the Reports of the Directors and Auditors and the Audited Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2022 be received and adopted.”
Result: This resolution was passed by a majority of the shareholders in attendance. There were no votes recorded against the passage of this resolution.

Resolution No. 2 (a)
“THAT the Directors, retire by rotation upon the expiration of one year (1) year and be re-elected and appointed by a single resolution.”
Result: This resolution was not passed as a majority of the shareholders voted against same.

Resolution No. 2 (b)
“THAT Ms. Arlene Martin who retires by rotation and being eligible for re-election be and is hereby reelected and appointed as a Director of the Company.”
Result: This resolution was not passed as a majority of the shareholders voted against same.

Resolution No. 2 (c)
“THAT Mr. Ricardo Allen who retires by rotation and being eligible for re-election be and is hereby re-elected and appointed as a Director of the Company.”
Result: This resolution was not passed as a majority of the shareholders voted against same.

Resolution No. 2 (d)
“THAT Mrs. Dainya-Joy Wint who retires by rotation and being eligible for re-election be and is hereby reelected and appointed as a Director of the Company.”
Result: This resolution was not passed as a majority of the shareholders voted against same.

Resolution No. 2 (e)
“THAT Mr. Larren Peart who retires by rotation and being eligible for re-election be and is hereby re-elected and appointed as a Director of the Company.”
Result: This resolution was passed by a majority of the shareholders in attendance. There were no votes recorded against the passage of this resolution.

Resolution No. 2 (f)
“THAT Mr. Ivan Carter who retires by rotation and being eligible for re-election be and is hereby re-elected and appointed as a Director of the Company.”
Result: This resolution was not passed as a majority of the shareholders voted against same.

Resolution No. 2 (g)
“THAT Mr. Adrian Smith who retires by rotation and being eligible for re-election be and is hereby re-elected and appointed as a Director of the Company.”
Result: This resolution was passed by a majority of the shareholders in attendance. There were no votes recorded against the passage of this resolution.

Resolution No. 3
“THAT the remuneration of the Directors be determined by the Board of Directors upon their re-election for the ensuing year.”
Result: This resolution was passed by a majority of the shareholders in attendance. There were no votes recorded against the passage of this resolution.

Resolution No. 4
“THAT CrichtonMullings & Associates, Chartered Accountants, having agreed to continue in office as auditors, be and are hereby appointed Auditors of the Company, to hold office until the next Annual General Meeting at a remuneration to be fixed by the Directors of the Company.”
Result: This resolution was not passed as a majority of the shareholders voted against same.

Resolution No. 5
“THAT Article 99 of the Company’s Articles of Incorporation be amended, approved and adopted by the Company to permit for the retirement, re-election and appointment of Directors to be done on a three (3) year rotation and the Directors be authorised and directed to register such amendment to the Company’s Articles of Incorporation with the Office of the Registrar of Companies as the Board of Directors of the Company may deem appropriate after receiving requisitions from the Office of the Registrar of Companies Registrar, by replacing and/or amending Article 99 to provide as follows: –

“At the first Annual General Meeting of the Company all the Directors shall retire from office, and at the Annual General Meeting in every subsequent year, one-third of the Directors for the time being or, if their number is not three (3) or a multiple of three (3), the number nearest one third (1/3) all of the Directors for the time being shall likewise retire from office.”

Result: This resolution was not passed as a majority of the shareholders voted against same.

Upon Notices being submitted to the Company of the proposal to nominate Mr. Tyrone Wilson at the AGM as a Director of iCreate and his acceptance thereof, this resolution was transacted under any other business which could be properly be brought before the AGM. This resolution was moved and seconded and put to a vote by the shareholders. The resolution was passed by a majority of the shareholders in attendance. There were no votes recorded against the passage of this resolution and Mr. Wilson was subsequently appointed as a Director of the Company with immediate effect.

The status of the Company as at November 24, 2023 is as follows: –
1. Directors: Mr. Tyrone Wilson (non-independent executive director);
Mr. Larren Peart (independent non-executive director); and
Mr. Adrian Smith (independent non-executive director)
2. The Company is without an Auditor.
The Company will be filling the casual vacancies in short order and securing the services and appointment of an Auditor so as to ensure compliance of the relevant sections of the JSE Junior Market Rules.

The Company wishes to express its gratitude to the shareholders who attended and participated at the AGM and its Management team.

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NCB Financial Group 2023 Consolidated Net Profit Attributable To Stockholders Of Parent Down 68%

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Robert Almedia Interim Group Chief Executive Officer has released the following Fourth Quarter 2023 results for NCB Financial Group Limited (NCBFG) and its subsidiaries (the Group) for the year ended September 30, 2023.

NCBFG reports consolidated net profit of $15.3 billion for the year ended September 30, 2023, a 56% or $19.8 billion decline from the prior year.

Consolidated net profit attributable to stockholders of the parent totalled $7.6 billion, a reduction of $16.3 billion or 68% from the prior year.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2023, the Group reported net profit of $1.6 billion, a $5.8 billion or 78% decrease from the June 2023 quarter.

Net loss attributable to stockholders of the parent for the September 2023 quarter was $2.1 billion, $7.6 billion lower than the previous quarter.

Stockholders’ equity of $223.7 billion increased by 16% or $30.5 billion.
Equity attributable to stockholders of the parent totalled $170.4 billion, up 17% or 424.3 billion over the prior year.

The net result was impacted by significant non-recurring events, primarily related to strategic restructuring activities.

NCBFG remains firmly committed to sustainable growth and continued success. The Group begins the new fiscal year in a strong position given the actions taken in the fourth quarter,
which will result in significantly reduced operating expenses, improved operational efficiency and effectiveness as well as a stronger more efficient capital position.

Our dedicated team, with their unwavering commitment, continues to be instrumental to the Group’s success and stability. We are confidently poised to enhance shareholder value and secure a prosperous path for the Group and our valued stakeholders and remain enthusiastic about the opportunities that lie ahead.

Restatement
There was a restatement of the prior year’s results in our Life and Health Insurance and Pension Fund Management (LHP) segment and in the Holding Company. The restatement in LHP segment was due to a non-recurring actuarial adjustment of $4.3 billion, previously booked in the December 2022 quarter in relation to the 2022 financial year. The restatement in the Holding Company was in relation to certain staff benefits.

Group Performance
Operating income of $137.3 billion declined by $8.0 billion or 6%. This was primarily as a result of events in our LHP segment. Additionally, during the September quarter the Group made significant leadership and other changes, which resulted in restructuring and separation costs.

The reduced revenues, in addition to increased operating expenses impacted most of our key performance metrics.
Return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE) declined to 0.71% from 1.76% and 4.80% from 15.53%, respectively. The cost to income ratio increased to 82.54% up from 71.40% in the prior year.

The decline in these metrics is due to certain non-recurring events. There is a renewed commitment to enhancing operational efficiency, optimising asset utilisation and reducing costs.

For More Information CLICK HERE

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Jetcon Corporation Ends Third Quarter Of 2023 With Loss Of JA$7.1M As Management Explores New Vehicle Sales

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Jetcon Corporation ended its Third Quarter of 2023 with a loss of JA$7.1million, compared to a JA$$12M profit in the same period last year. This as sales continues its trend downwards to be roughly half those of last year.

Jetcon’ s statement of comprehensive income for the second quarter ended June 30, 2023 also showed a loss of JA$3.50M. This management said was due to prudent fiscal policy adopted by the company in the month of April 2023. This saw the company disposing of 10 vehicles which it carried on the books that were haemorrhaging in value. If these vehicles were sold at market value the company’s profit would have been $8.99 Million.

Jetcon also ended that second quarter with revenue decreasing 27 percent, to JA$184M, compared with the same period in 2022 and 28 percent for the half year to JA$363M. This according to management was mostly due to increased rates by the Bank of Jamaica which saw lenders preferring to invest available funds with the Bank of Jamaica rather than lending to those wishing to purchase vehicles.

Third Quarter Inventories totaled $419million, while receivables totaled $93million.

The company continues to grow inventory of solar equipment as they push to diversify operations to make it more resilient to economic shocks.

While used vehicle sales continue to stagnate, management is nevertheless beginning the exploration of new vehicle sales, a market which has seen increased sales year-on-year.

For More Information CLICK THIS LINK

 

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A.S. Bryden & Sons Holdings Limited Lists On The JSE’s Main Market And USD Equities Market

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A.S. Bryden & Sons Holdings Limited, a Trinidadian company acquired by Seprod Limited, officially listed its ordinary shares on the Main Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) and its Class A Preference Shares on the JSE USD Equities Market on November 10, 2023, by Introduction. The Company being the first to list on the Main Market and USD Equities Market of the JSE in 2023. The Company commenced trading of the ordinary shares under the short name ASBH at a price of JA$22.50 on the Main Market and the Preference Shares under the short name ASBH6.00 at a price of US$1.00 on the USD Equities Market.

ASBH is the 52nd company to list on the JSE’s Main Market, 14th company on the USD Equities Market and the 102 company listed overall on the JSE. The listing of A.S. Bryden & Sons Holdings Limited has increased to twelve (12), the new securities that are listed on the JSE since January 2023.

“The total money raised on the market shows that equity capital is the way to finance your business, especially during a high interest rate regime, said the delighted Group Business Development Manager of the Jamaica Stock Exchange, Mr. Andre Gooden, in his welcoming remarks at the Listing Ceremony. He informed the audience that the market capitalization of ASBH at $31.27 billion had increased the market capitalization of the Main Market to over $1.61 trillion and the overall market capitalization of the JSE’s combined markets to $1.8 trillion. Mr. Gooden added that since the start of the year, a total of JA$18.74 billion (approximately US$122.12 million) was raised by way of Initial Public Offers (IPOs), Additional Public Offer (APO) and private offers.

Describing the JSE as the most vibrant stock exchange in the Caribbean in which to participate, Mr. Richard Pandohie, Chief Executive Officer of A.S. Bryden & Sons Holdings Limited, in his remarks to the audience revealed that the Bryden Group which had been in private hands for 99 years, as part of its 100th year Anniversary, was allowing investors to participate in its journey. He also described the Company as being part of the fabric of Trinidad and Tobago and noted with satisfaction that 54% of the employees had chosen to buy shares in the Company.

“Today we are witnessing a major milestone in the evolution of the Seprod Group allowing investors to participate in its journey,” said Mr. Pandohie. He said that ASBH is the biggest acquisition in the history of the Seprod Group and added that the public and investors across the Caribbean can anticipate more big plans from the Company. He disclosed that the Company was in the process of building a US$30m distribution centre in Trinidad and will be expanding its footprints in Guyana and Barbados. Mr. Pandohie further explained that the current listings of shares on the JSE was not about raising funds at this time but to position the Company to efficiently access capital if the need arises. In highlighting the growth of the Company since its acquisition by Seprod Limited, Mr. Pandohie stated that ASBH workforce had expanded from 1,263 to 1,565. He gave huge thanks to the employees, JSE, Financial Services Commission, NCB Capital Markets Limited (broker), the professional service providers, business partners, investors and customers for the unwavering support given to the Company.

In his remarks, Mr. Alex Johnson, Manager – Origination & Structuring at NCB Capital Markets Limited, the broker of the listing, congratulated ASBH for successfully listing on the JSE and for choosing NCB Capital Markets Limited as their broker. He further remarked that it was fitting that the JSE was chosen as the platform to go public as the Company commemorates its 100th year anniversary. He further tipped the audience that Seprod Limited had been consistent in paying dividends and hence he sees current and future new investors also receiving significant benefit from investing in ASBH’s shares, its newest subsidiary.

About A.S. Bryden & Sons Holdings Limited (ASBH)
A.S. Bryden & Sons Holdings Limited was incorporated in Trinidad and Tobago on July 1, 1999. The Company serves as the non-operating parent company of the Bryden’s Group of Companies. A.S. Bryden & Sons Holdings Limited (“A.S. Bryden”) is a consumer products distributor in Trinidad and distributes food, pharmaceuticals, hardware, houseware and industrial equipment. It is a partner of choice for global principals and has its own brands. It has significant market share in Trinidad with smaller presence in Barbados and Guyana. A.S. Bryden operates through three principal operating subsidiaries A.S. Bryden & Sons (Trinidad) Limited (“ASBT”), Bryden pi Limited (“Bryden pi”) and F.T. Farfan Limited (“F.T. Farfan”).
Seprod Limited is the majority shareholder.

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ansa McaL Group’s Results Exhibiting Continued Excellent Recovery Over Nine-Month Period Ended 30 September 2023.

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A. Norman Sabga chairman ansa McaL Limited Has released the following unaudited financial statements for the quarter ended September 30th, 2023.

Over the nine-month period ended 30 September 2023, the Group’s results continued
their excellent recovery:
• Revenue increased to $5.170 billion ($4.716 billion – 2022)
• PBT increased to $468 million ($139 million – 2022)
• EPS increased to $1.63 ($0.00 – 2022)
• Total assets grew to $17.903 billion ($17.570 billion – 2022)
• Our gearing ratio decreased to 7.4% from 8.2% as at December 2022

Our Banking and Insurance businesses delivered a strong performance during this reporting period with interest and investment income returning to pre-2019 levels and the investment portfolios producing positive non-cash mark to market gains reversing non-cash losses in 2022.

Our Beverage, Construction and Distribution businesses demonstrated strong top line growth but were impacted by nonrecurring increased input costs due to buy decisions to secure supply chains amidst global disruptions.

Our Automotive operations performed well increasing both revenue and profitability year on year.

We are resolute in achieving our ambitious 2X objective to double the Group’s size and scale by 2027 and have made strategic generational investments in support of attaining this goal.

Our newly commissioned, state-of the-art returnable bottling line at Carib Brewery will enable increased capacity for exports, ensure consistent production of high-quality beverages with greater operational efficiency, reduced waste and lower water and energy
consumption. This significant investment underscores our deep commitment to the circular economy, with its focus on re-use and re-cycling.

At ANSA Chemicals, we are in the early stages of a 50% chlor-alkali plant expansion which will assure its ability to supply 100% of the chlorine needed to provide clean and potable water to the entire CARICOM Region. We expect this expansion to be completed by March 2024.

The performance at COLFIRE has improved noticeably post-acquisition laying the foundation for growth and innovation in the Insurance sector.

The Group is underpinned by a resilient balance sheet which makes us well positioned to pursue organic and acquisitive opportunities. Our diversified portfolio stands us in good stead to weather any challenges which lie ahead in a world where disruption has become the norm.

For More Information CLICK THIS LINK

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