Dec 9, 2020 - Technology

Airbnb valued at $47 billion in IPO

Illustration of an open door revealing Ben Franklin from a hundred dollar bill

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Airbnb on Wednesday raised $3.5 billion in its IPO at a fully diluted valuation of around $47.3 billion, and will begin trading Thursday on the Nasdaq under ticker symbol ABNB.

Why it matters: This is the culmination of a remarkable rebound for the hospitality giant, which many counted out once the pandemic began its rampage.

Details: Airbnb priced its shares at $68, per Bloomberg, versus an upwardly revised range of $56-$60 per share.

  • It had raised approximately $6.4 billion from venture capital and private equity firms, including at a $31 billion valuation in late 2017. Earlier this year the company secured a new equity and debt round at just an $18 billion valuation, tied to COVID-19, and one month later 25% of its employees.

Financials: Airbnb reports nearly a $700 million net loss on $2.5 billion in revenue for the first nine months of 2020, versus a $322 million net loss on $3.7 billion in revenue for the year earlier period. But it also reports $219 million in profits for the third quarter of 2020, as bookings rebounded.

  • The company says that the composition of bookings changed in 2020, as people sought longer stays closer to home.

The bottom line: Tuesday was a huge day for tech IPOs, with both DoorDash and C3.ai both pricing high and then watching their shares soar.

  • Airbnb is hoping for a repeat performance.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified the exchange on which Airbnb plans to list.

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