Trip.com reports quarterly loss after antitrust penalty

Trip.com ($TCOM) reported second-quarter revenue of RMB15.7 billion, up 6% from a year earlier but down 3% sequentially. The group recorded a net loss of RMB2.4 billion, compared with a RMB4.9 billion profit a year earlier, after recognizing a RMB5.2 billion antitrust penalty. The penalty had already been announced; its effect on these financial results is the new disclosure.

Adjusted EBITDA declined to RMB4.6 billion from RMB4.9 billion, while revenue from the company’s international platform increased by more than 50%. That combination shows continuing overseas growth alongside softer group-level adjusted profitability. The reported loss should not be presented as entirely operating in nature, but excluding the penalty also does not erase the decline in the separately reported adjusted EBITDA measure.

Sources:

• Trip.com — unaudited quarterly and first-half results