Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) — research brief (BMC #085 on gallery, queue id 85)

Prepared 2026-10-11 (America/Chicago). Labels: FACT = stated by the company in its Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 (filed Feb 13, 2026, audited) or its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 Jun 2026 (filed Aug 6, 2026, unaudited). SECONDARY = none used for figures. INFERENCE = ratios, growth rates or sums computed by this project from company numbers.

Sources (accessed 2026-10-11)

Form 10-K FY2025: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1324424/000132442426000008/expe-20251231.htm
Form 10-Q, quarter ended 30 Jun 2026: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1324424/000132442426000053/expe-20260630.htm
Logo: project monogram ("E" on a navy tile), not Expedia's official mark. Trademark of its owner; identification only.

Teaching arc

Own no rooms or planes: sign up supply, sell it as merchant of record so travelers pay up front, keep about 12 cents of every booked dollar, then spend roughly half of revenue on traffic and partner commissions — and use the cash held before hotels are paid as a working-capital cushion.

Key numbers (FACT unless noted)

FY2025 (year ended Dec 31, 2025)

Revenue $14,733M (2024 $13,691M, +8%; 2023 $12,839M). B2C $9,474M (+2%), B2B $4,842M (+18%), trivago third-party $417M (+33%).
Revenue by business model: merchant $10,256M (70%, +9%), agency $3,183M (22%, flat), advertising, media and other $1,294M (8%, +20%).
Revenue by service: lodging $11,752M (+7%, 80%), air $407M (-5%), EG Advertising $758M (+19%), trivago advertising $417M (+33%), other $1,399M.
Gross bookings $119,590M (+8%): B2C $83,867M (+3%), B2B $35,723M (+20%). B2C about 70% / B2B about 30% of gross bookings (INFERENCE). Revenue margin 12.3% (B2C 11.3%, B2B 13.6%). Booked room nights +8%.
Operating income $1,871M (12.7% of revenue; 2024 $1,319M, +42%). Net income attributable to Expedia Group $1,294M (2024 $1,234M; about +5% is INFERENCE); diluted EPS $9.81.
Costs: cost of revenue $1,456M (9.9%); selling and marketing - direct $7,349M (49.9%); selling and marketing - indirect $836M (5.7%); technology and content $1,277M (8.7%); G&A $765M (5.2%); D&A $887M; legal reserves, occupancy tax and other $185M. Direct+indirect marketing about 55.6% of revenue (INFERENCE). Direct marketing rose $503M mainly on B2B partner commissions.
Operating cash flow $3,880M (2024 $3,085M) including a $1,858M inflow from deferred merchant bookings; capital expenditures $770M; free cash flow about $3,110M (INFERENCE). Cash paid to acquire shares about $1.9B; dividends $200M.
Balance sheet Dec 31, 2025: cash and equivalents $5,413M, restricted cash $1,563M, short-term investments $320M; deferred merchant bookings $10,428M (Dec 2024 $8,517M).
About 3.6M lodging properties (about 2.4M Vrbo online-bookable alternative accommodations; about 1.2M hotels and alternative accommodations via other brands), over 500 airlines; about 16,000 employees, about half in technology roles.
Mr. Diller (Chairman and Senior Executive) and the family foundation hold all Class B shares, about 32% of voting power.

H1 / Q2 2026 (10-Q, unaudited)

Revenue H1 $7,741M (H1 2025 $6,774M, +14%); Q2 $4,315M vs $3,786M (+14%). B2B H1 $2,676M (+24%); B2C H1 $4,795M (+8%); trivago third-party H1 $270M (+48%).
Gross bookings H1 $69,458M (+12%); Q2 $33,928M (+12%); B2B gross bookings H1 $21,488M (+22%). Lodging room nights +6%. Revenue margin H1 11.1% (10.9%).
Operating income H1 $1,051M (vs $415M); Q2 $800M (vs $485M). Net income attributable H1 $872M (vs $130M).
Operating cash flow H1 $5,409M (vs $4,073M); capex H1 $383M. Cash and equivalents $6,682M; restricted cash $2,402M; deferred merchant bookings $15,426M at Jun 30, 2026. Cash plus short-term investments $7.1B. New $2.5B revolving facility (March 2026, essentially untapped); $1B 5.5% senior notes issued April 2026; convertible notes repaid Feb 2026 (about $1.1B cash).

Cautions

Gross bookings is an operating metric, not revenue; merchant revenue is recognized when the stay occurs, so revenue margin moves with seasonality (H1 margin is lower than the full-year margin).
First-half operating cash flow is seasonally strong because bookings run ahead of stays; second-half cash flow is typically negative.
The 10-K says Expedia has no control over rooms and no inventory risk under the merchant model.
Free cash flow is an inference (operating cash flow less capital expenditures); Expedia reports its own non-GAAP version elsewhere.

# Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) — research brief (BMC #085 on gallery, queue id 85) Prepared 2026-10-11 (America/Chicago). Labels: **FACT** = stated by the company in its Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 (filed Feb 13, 2026, audited) or its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 Jun 2026 (filed Aug 6, 2026, unaudited). **SECONDARY** = none used for figures. **INFERENCE** = ratios, growth rates or sums computed by this project from company numbers. ## Sources (accessed 2026-10-11) - Form 10-K FY2025: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1324424/000132442426000008/expe-20251231.htm - Form 10-Q, quarter ended 30 Jun 2026: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1324424/000132442426000053/expe-20260630.htm - Logo: project monogram ("E" on a navy tile), **not** Expedia's official mark. Trademark of its owner; identification only. ## Teaching arc **Own no rooms or planes: sign up supply, sell it as merchant of record so travelers pay up front, keep about 12 cents of every booked dollar, then spend roughly half of revenue on traffic and partner commissions — and use the cash held before hotels are paid as a working-capital cushion.** ## Key numbers (FACT unless noted) **FY2025 (year ended Dec 31, 2025)** - Revenue $14,733M (2024 $13,691M, +8%; 2023 $12,839M). B2C $9,474M (+2%), B2B $4,842M (+18%), trivago third-party $417M (+33%). - Revenue by business model: merchant $10,256M (70%, +9%), agency $3,183M (22%, flat), advertising, media and other $1,294M (8%, +20%). - Revenue by service: lodging $11,752M (+7%, 80%), air $407M (-5%), EG Advertising $758M (+19%), trivago advertising $417M (+33%), other $1,399M. - Gross bookings $119,590M (+8%): B2C $83,867M (+3%), B2B $35,723M (+20%). B2C about 70% / B2B about 30% of gross bookings (INFERENCE). Revenue margin 12.3% (B2C 11.3%, B2B 13.6%). Booked room nights +8%. - Operating income $1,871M (12.7% of revenue; 2024 $1,319M, +42%). Net income attributable to Expedia Group $1,294M (2024 $1,234M; about +5% is INFERENCE); diluted EPS $9.81. - Costs: cost of revenue $1,456M (9.9%); selling and marketing - direct $7,349M (49.9%); selling and marketing - indirect $836M (5.7%); technology and content $1,277M (8.7%); G&A $765M (5.2%); D&A $887M; legal reserves, occupancy tax and other $185M. Direct+indirect marketing about 55.6% of revenue (INFERENCE). Direct marketing rose $503M mainly on B2B partner commissions. - Operating cash flow $3,880M (2024 $3,085M) including a $1,858M inflow from deferred merchant bookings; capital expenditures $770M; free cash flow about $3,110M (INFERENCE). Cash paid to acquire shares about $1.9B; dividends $200M. - Balance sheet Dec 31, 2025: cash and equivalents $5,413M, restricted cash $1,563M, short-term investments $320M; deferred merchant bookings $10,428M (Dec 2024 $8,517M). - About 3.6M lodging properties (about 2.4M Vrbo online-bookable alternative accommodations; about 1.2M hotels and alternative accommodations via other brands), over 500 airlines; about 16,000 employees, about half in technology roles. - Mr. Diller (Chairman and Senior Executive) and the family foundation hold all Class B shares, about 32% of voting power. **H1 / Q2 2026 (10-Q, unaudited)** - Revenue H1 $7,741M (H1 2025 $6,774M, +14%); Q2 $4,315M vs $3,786M (+14%). B2B H1 $2,676M (+24%); B2C H1 $4,795M (+8%); trivago third-party H1 $270M (+48%). - Gross bookings H1 $69,458M (+12%); Q2 $33,928M (+12%); B2B gross bookings H1 $21,488M (+22%). Lodging room nights +6%. Revenue margin H1 11.1% (10.9%). - Operating income H1 $1,051M (vs $415M); Q2 $800M (vs $485M). Net income attributable H1 $872M (vs $130M). - Operating cash flow H1 $5,409M (vs $4,073M); capex H1 $383M. Cash and equivalents $6,682M; restricted cash $2,402M; deferred merchant bookings $15,426M at Jun 30, 2026. Cash plus short-term investments $7.1B. New $2.5B revolving facility (March 2026, essentially untapped); $1B 5.5% senior notes issued April 2026; convertible notes repaid Feb 2026 (about $1.1B cash). ## Cautions - Gross bookings is an operating metric, not revenue; merchant revenue is recognized when the stay occurs, so revenue margin moves with seasonality (H1 margin is lower than the full-year margin). - First-half operating cash flow is seasonally strong because bookings run ahead of stays; second-half cash flow is typically negative. - The 10-K says Expedia has no control over rooms and no inventory risk under the merchant model. - Free cash flow is an inference (operating cash flow less capital expenditures); Expedia reports its own non-GAAP version elsewhere.