- Summer 2025 forward order TTV up 14%
- Shares up 65% over the past year
- Confident of meeting full year profit forecast
Shares in On The Beach (OTB) were up 3% to 278p in morning trading after the online package holiday provider reported a 23% rise in adjusted pre-tax profit to £7.6 million for the six months ended 31 March 2025.
The company said TTV (total transaction value) was up 13% for the six-month period with strong volume growth of 11% coming in ‘significantly ahead of the package holiday market’.
Overall market seat supply remains strong heading into the summer, said On The Beach, with over 70 million seats from UK departure points to European destinations, including an additional 5% airline capacity to beach leisure destinations year-on-year.
CEO Shaun Morton told Shares: ‘We have had a very good start to the year with a strong balance sheet in place.’
Net debt was reduced by £18 million year-on-year during the half and the company also returned circa £30 million to shareholders through buybacks and dividends.
‘We have expanded [our customer reach] to include City breaks and into Ireland where we have access to five to six million customers.’
Morton added: ‘Every core of the business is in better shape since pre-pandemic. More people are considering On The Beach as a quality choice with [options to book] four and five-star hotels.’
GOOD NEWS FOR SHAREHOLDERS
Last December, the company announced a £25 million share buyback programme ‘reflecting the board’s confidence in the strategy and business model’ and in its latest update, proposed an 11% hike in the interim dividend to 1p per share.
The company also insisted it is on track to deliver its medium ambition of £2.5 billion of TTV, £100 million in EBITDA (earnings before interest taxation depreciation and amortisation) and £85 million of pre-tax profit.
HOLIDAYS REMAIN A PRIORITY
Analysts at Peel Hunt said: ‘Bookings are coming in later in full year 2025. However, holidays remain a priority for consumers and On The Beach has a growing portfolio of well-priced holidays to sell them.
‘Another indication of accelerating momentum is that overall Summer 2025 forward order TTV is up 14% year-on-year (having been up 10% at the time of the February trading update).’
