Amadeus ended 2023 with revenue increases across distribution, Air IT solutions and its hospitality division.
In the fourth quarter of the year the distribution and technology company reported a 17% increase year over year in air distribution revenue to €627 million. Air IT solutions revenue was up 20% to €495 million while hospitality solutions revenue increased 5% to €232 million.
Revenue for the quarter increased 18% year over year to almost €1.4 billion with EBITDA up 18% to €469 million and a 47% increase in profit to €210 million.
Q4 results were slightly marred by the Middle East conflict with an increase in booking cancellations, which Amadeus said impacted all regions but called out North America and the Middle East and Africa.
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Luis Maroto, president and CEO of Amadeus, said, “In 2023, Amadeus experienced strong growth, expanding profitability and high cash flow generation. This has allowed us not only to resume a dividend payment, but also to announce share repurchase programs in aggregate amounting to over €1 billion in 2023.
"Amadeus has long been a story of expansion and diversification, and over the year we’ve continued to invest. We believe we can make a positive impact through technology at more touchpoints along the traveler journey, which means expanding our addressable markets and customer base. This is evidenced in our recent announcement that we are acquiring a leading provider of biometric solutions for airports, airlines and border control customers, in addition to the upcoming implementation of a new mid-sized [Amadeus Central Reservation System] customer. As we advance with our strategy, we are optimistic about our growth in 2024 and beyond.”
Amadeus announced its acquisition of biometrics specialist Vision-Box for €320 million at the end of January, saying at the time the deal would add border control and other biometric access solutions to Amadeus, widening its capabilities to offer services from traveler booking to border control and boarding.
During a call with analysts Wednesday, Maroto talked about the opportunity for biometrics in the airport as well as other segments such as hotels.
"We believe there is an opportunity in airports, it has seen growth, it's part of our guidance. We feel it [Vision-Box] is a very good company and a very good opportunity in airports but also elsewhere. We also envision biometrics can be used for other parts of our business, so it's going to be much more than just the airport field."
He also touched on a new cloud-based revenue accounting system deal with American Airlines describing it as "our first stand-alone revenue accounting deployment and our first major IT project with a U.S. carrier."
On the impact of direct connects between airlines and online travel agencies, Maroto said it was marginal so far, adding that direct connects are mostly related to big domestic carriers and home bookings and require big volumes because of the need for maintenance, investment and integrations.
Full-year 2023 revenue increased 21% year over year to €5.4 billion with EBITDA up 30% to just over €2 billion. Adjusted profit increased 60% to just over €1 billion.
Air IT distribution revenue increased almost 24% to €2.7 billion, while the air IT solutions business was up 22% to €1.9 billion. Revenue in the hospitality & other solutions business unit increased 14%, to €883 million.
Providing guidance for 2024, chief financial officer Till Streichert said revenue growth of up to 14.5% is expected.
Streichert recently sat down with PhocusWire to discuss 2023 results, the Vision-Box acquisition and priorities for 2024. Watch the full interview below.
Executive Interview: Amadeus full year 2023 financial results