TIVP010: Airbnb (ABNB): A Silicon Valley Gem w/ Shawn O’Malley

The Intrinsic Value Podcast - The Investor’s Podcast Network

The Investor's Podcast Network

Investing, Education, Business

4.6 • 593 Ratings

🗓️ 9 March 2025

⏱️ 66 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In today’s episode, Shawn O’Malley (@Shawn_OMalley_) breaks down Airbnb (ticker: ABNB), a dominant and disruptive business in the hospitality industry. Airbnb has changed how the world travels, convincing millions to spend a night in a stranger’s home, similar to how Uber convinced the world to ride in strangers’ vehicles. Shawn explores how Airbnb got its start, the business’s economics, and whether the company is an attractive investment at current prices. In this episode, you’ll learn the secret sauce behind Airbnb, how it stacks up against the competition, what Airbnb’s flywheel looks like, how the company plans to grow, the best ways to think about valuing its shares, plus so much more! Prefer to watch? Click here to watch this episode on YouTube. IN THIS EPISODE, YOU’LL LEARN 00:00 - Intro 03:06 - Airbnb’s surprising origin story 07:56 - How Airbnb’s co-founder has continued to lead the company 23:47 - Which concerns pose the biggest downside risks for Airbnb investors 25:12 - How Airbnb is navigating regulatory controversies in cities across the world 28:25 - What impact has Covid had on the business, and why it may have made Airbnb stronger 41:00 - Airbnb’s plans for growth and continued disruption of the hospitality industry 41:20 - What underpins Airbnb’s flywheel for success 47:56 - How to think about Airbnb’s valuation and Shawn’s decision on Airbnb for The Intrinsic Value Portfolio And much, much more! *Disclaimer: Slight timestamp discrepancies may occur due to podcast platform differences. BOOKS AND RESOURCES Get smarter about valuing businesses in just a few minutes each week through our newsletter, The Intrinsic Value Newsletter. Check out The Story of Airbnb w/ Clay Finck | YouTube Video. Aswath Damodaran’s blog post on ABNB. Leigh Gallagher's book, The Airbnb Story. Check out the books mentioned in the podcast here. Enjoy ad-free episodes when you subscribe to our Premium Feed. NEW TO THE SHOW? Follow our official social media accounts: X (Twitter) | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | TikTok. Browse through all our episodes (complete with transcripts) here. Try Shawn's favorite tool for picking stock winners and managing our portfolios: TIP Finance. Enjoy exclusive perks from our favorite Apps and Services. Learn how to better start, manage, and grow your business with the best business podcasts. SPONSORS Support our free podcast by supporting our sponsors: Airbnb TurboTax Netsuite CFI Education Public Shopify Connect with Shawn: Twitter | LinkedIn | Email HELP US OUT! Help us reach new listeners by leaving us a rating and review on Spotify! It takes less than 30 seconds and really helps our show grow, which allows us to bring on even better guests for you all! Thank you – we really appreciate it! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://theinvestorspodcastnetwork.supportingcast.fm

Transcript

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0:00.0	You're listening to TIP.
0:02.7	This week, I'm covering a company that blends hospitality and tourism with Silicon Valley,
0:08.5	which is, of course, none other than Airbnb.
0:11.3	Airbnb is a fun company to cover not only because it's growing quickly and I've used its service many times,
0:16.6	but also because its share price is a bit beaten down below its 2020 IPO price and well below
0:22.3	its peak in 2021 at over $200 per share.
0:26.4	The pandemic was clearly a major setback, but earnings misses over the last year and revised
0:31.7	growth outlooks have weighed on the stock.
0:34.0	Some will tell you that Airbnb is terrible, an overpriced service that has become increasingly
0:38.8	unaffordable due to different layers of fees, while Airbnb hosts have abused travelers
0:43.9	with cleaning requests and chores to complete before leaving.
0:47.0	While there's a lot of noise surrounding a company as high profile as Airbnb, especially
0:53.5	considering that they operate a service that
0:55.8	can directly affect people's vacations and travel, so no pressure at all there.
1:00.8	The reality is Airbnb remains as popular and as profitable as ever.
1:05.8	And the trend continues to move in the right direction for shareholders.
1:09.8	In 2015, the number of nights and experiences
1:12.4	booked with Airbnb was 72 million. In 2022, that number grew to 400 million, and by 2024,
1:20.7	that number was approaching 500 million, while the gross booking value of bookings made through
1:26.0	Airbnb has more than doubled since 2019.
1:29.3	In the rest of this episode, I'll tell you the story of Airbnb, break down its business,
1:33.7	decide whether it offers good value to investors.
	...

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