American Express Global Business Travel, which is operated by
Global Business Travel Group, Inc. (NYSE: GBTG) (“Amex GBT” or the
“Company”), a leading B2B software and services company for travel
and expense, today announced financial results for the first
quarter ended March 31, 2024.
First Quarter 2024 Highlights
Delivered Strong Financial Results
- TTV grew 9% year-over-year (10% workday adjusted1).
- Revenue grew 6% year-over-year to $610 million (7% workday
adjusted1).
- Record first-quarter Adjusted EBITDA of $123 million,
representing growth of 24%.
- Reiterated full-year 2024 revenue and Adjusted EBITDA guidance
ranges.
Continued Share Gains
- LTM Total New Wins Value totaled $3.3 billion, including $2.0
billion from SME.
- 96% LTM customer retention rate.
Operating Leverage
- 6% revenue growth versus 2% Adjusted Operating Expense
growth.
- Operating leverage drove Adjusted EBITDA margin expansion of
300bps year-over-year.
Positive Cash Flow & Deleveraging
- Important milestone reaching positive first quarter Free Cash
Flow of $24 million, representing growth of $133 million
year-over-year.
- Lowered leverage ratio to 2.2x2; further interest rate
reduction under our credit agreement.
Agreement to Acquire CWT
- Announced definitive agreement to acquire CWT, a global
business travel and meetings solutions provider.
- Transaction value of $570M represents multiple of 2.5x Adjusted
EBITDA including $155 million of identified synergies.
- Expected to be break-even to earnings per share in the first
year after transaction close and accretive thereafter.
Paul Abbott, Amex GBT’s Chief Executive Officer, stated: “In the
first quarter, we delivered strong financial results with share
gains, significant margin expansion and meaningful Adjusted EBITDA
growth to reach the highest first quarter Adjusted EBITDA in our
company's history. This puts us well on track to deliver against
our full-year guidance. Our recently announced agreement to acquire
CWT accelerates our ability to deliver long-term growth and value
creation for shareholders."
First Quarter 2024 Financial Summary
(in millions, except percentages;
unaudited)
Three Months Ended
YOY
March 31,
2024
2023
Total Transaction Value (TTV)
$
8,105
$
7,422
9
%
Transaction Growth
6
%
60
%
Revenue
$
610
$
578
6
%
Travel Revenue
$
492
$
467
5
%
Product and Professional Services
Revenue
$
118
$
111
7
%
Total operating expenses
$
594
$
587
1
%
Adjusted Operating Expenses
$
487
$
479
2
%
Net loss
$
(19
)
$
(27
)
$
8
Net loss margin
(3
)%
(5
)%
200bps
EBITDA
$
88
$
45
98
%
Adjusted EBITDA
$
123
$
99
24
%
Adjusted EBITDA Margin
20
%
17
%
300bps
Net cash provided by (used in) operating
activities
$
49
$
(77
)
$
126
Free Cash Flow
$
24
$
(109
)
$
133
Net Debt
$
888
$
1,035
Net Debt / LTM Adjusted EBITDA
2.2x
4.5x
Workday adjusted TTV, transaction and revenue year-over-year
growth was 10%, 7% and 7%, respectively1.
First Quarter 2024 Financial Highlights (Changes compared
to prior year period unless otherwise noted)
Revenue of $610 million increased $32 million, or 6%, in line
with the Company's expectations for the quarter. Within this,
Travel Revenue increased $25 million, or 5%, primarily due to
Transaction Growth partially offset by a small decline in yield.
Product and Professional Services Revenue increased $7 million, or
7%, primarily due to increased management fees and increased
product and consulting revenue. Total revenue yield (revenue / TTV)
declined modestly due to mix of non-TTV-driven revenue and higher
digital transactions.
Total operating expenses of $594 million increased $7 million,
or 1%. Increased cost of revenue to support transaction growth,
investments in technology and content and higher general and
administrative costs largely related to mergers & acquisitions
costs were significantly offset by cost savings initiatives and
productivity improvements, in addition to decreased restructuring
and integration charges.
Adjusted Operating Expenses of $487 million increased $8
million, or 2%.
Net loss was $19 million, an improvement of $8 million versus
net loss of $27 million in the same period in 2023, primarily due
to improvement in operating leverage from higher revenue and
favorable fair value movements on earnout derivative liabilities,
partially offset by higher provision for income taxes.
Adjusted EBITDA of $123 million increased $24 million, or 24%.
Revenue growth and operating leverage resulted in Adjusted EBITDA
margin expansion of 300bps to 20%.
Net cash provided by operating activities totaled $49 million,
an improvement of $126 million versus $77 million in cash used by
operating activities in the same period in 2023, due to favorable
net change in working capital primarily driven by the Egencia
working capital optimization program and timing of certain receipts
and payments.
Free Cash Flow totaled $24 million, an improvement of $133
million versus Free Cash Flow use of $109 million in the same
period in 2023, due to the increase in net cash provided by
operating activities and decreased use of cash for the purchase of
property and equipment.
Net Debt: As of March 31, 2024, total debt, net of unamortized
debt discount and debt issuance cost was $1,363 million, compared
to $1,362 million as of December 31, 2023. Net Debt was $888
million as of March 31, 2024, compared to $886 million as of
December 31, 2023. Leverage ratio was 2.2x as of March 31, 2024,
down from 2.3x as of December 31, 2023. The cash balance was $475
million as of March 31, 2024, compared to $476 million as of
December 31, 2023.
Reiterating Full-Year 2024 Guidance
Karen Williams, Amex GBT's Chief Financial Officer, stated:
"First quarter performance was in line with our expectations, and
we remain confident in delivering the strong profitability growth
we have guided to for the full year. We expect our continued focus
on productivity, margin expansion and cash flow acceleration will
drive full-year Adjusted EBITDA growth between 18% and 32% and Free
Cash Flow generation in excess of $100 million in 2024."
The guidance below does not incorporate the impact of the CWT
acquisition, which is expected to close in the second half of
2024.
Full-Year 2024
Guidance
Year-over-Year Growth
Revenue
$2.43B – $2.50B
+ 6% – 9%
Adjusted EBITDA
$450M – $500M
+ 18% – 32%
Adjusted EBITDA Margin
18% – 20%
+ ~150bps – 350bps
Free Cash Flow
> $100M
Please refer to the section below titled "Reconciliation of
Full-Year 2024 Adjusted EBITDA and Free Cash Flow Guidance" for a
description of certain assumptions and risks associated with this
guidance and reconciliation to GAAP.
Webcast Information
Amex GBT will host its first quarter 2024 investor conference
call today at 9:00 a.m. E.T. The live webcast and accompanying
slide presentation can be accessed on the Amex GBT Investor
Relations website at investors.amexglobalbusinesstravel.com. A
replay of the event will be available on the website for at least
90 days following the event.
Glossary of Terms
See the “Glossary of Terms” for the definitions of certain terms
used within this press release.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
The Company refers to certain financial measures that are not
recognized under GAAP in this press release, including EBITDA,
Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA Margin, Adjusted Operating
Expenses, Free Cash Flow and Net Debt. See “Non-GAAP Financial
Measures” below for an explanation of these non-GAAP financial
measures and “Tabular Reconciliations for Non-GAAP Financial
Measures” below for reconciliations of the non-GAAP financial
measures to the comparable GAAP measures.
About American Express Global Business Travel
American Express Global Business Travel is the world’s leading
B2B travel platform, providing software and services to manage
travel, expenses, and meetings & events for companies of all
sizes. We have built the most valuable marketplace in B2B travel to
deliver unrivalled choice, value and experiences. With travel
professionals in more than 140 countries, our customers and
travelers enjoy the powerful backing of American Express Global
Business Travel.
Visit amexglobalbusinesstravel.com for more information about
Amex GBT. Follow @amexgbt on X (formerly known as Twitter),
LinkedIn and Instagram.
GLOBAL BUSINESS TRAVEL GROUP,
INC. CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(Unaudited)
Three months ended
March 31,
(in $ millions, except share and per
share data)
2024
2023
Revenue
$
610
$
578
Costs and expenses:
Cost of revenue (excluding depreciation
and amortization shown separately below)
245
242
Sales and marketing
99
103
Technology and content
108
101
General and administrative
86
72
Restructuring and other exit charges
9
23
Depreciation and amortization
47
46
Total operating expenses
594
587
Operating income (loss)
16
(9
)
Interest expense
(33
)
(34
)
Fair value movement on earnout derivative
liabilities
18
3
Other income, net
7
5
Income (loss) before income taxes
8
(35
)
(Provision for) benefit from income
taxes
(27
)
8
Net loss
(19
)
(27
)
Less: net loss attributable to
non-controlling interests in subsidiaries
—
(25
)
Net loss attributable to the Company’s
Class A common stockholders
$
(19
)
$
(2
)
Basic loss per share attributable to the
Company’s Class A common stockholders
$
(0.04
)
$
(0.03
)
Weighted average number of shares
outstanding - Basic
461,386,280
60,376,708
Diluted loss per share attributable to the
Company’s Class A common stockholders
$
(0.04
)
$
(0.06
)
Weighted average number of shares
outstanding - Diluted
461,386,280
454,825,189
GLOBAL BUSINESS TRAVEL GROUP,
INC. CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(in $ millions, except share and per
share data)
March 31, 2024
December 31,
2023
(Unaudited)
Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents
$
475
$
476
Accounts receivable (net of allowance for
credit losses of $13 and $12 as of March 31, 2024 and December 31,
2023, respectively)
812
726
Due from affiliates
37
42
Prepaid expenses and other current
assets
152
116
Total current assets
1,476
1,360
Property and equipment, net
232
232
Equity method investments
13
14
Goodwill
1,206
1,212
Other intangible assets, net
528
552
Operating lease right-of-use assets
52
50
Deferred tax assets
264
281
Other non-current assets
64
50
Total assets
$
3,835
$
3,751
Liabilities and shareholders’
equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable
$
386
$
302
Due to affiliates
44
39
Accrued expenses and other current
liabilities
526
466
Current portion of operating lease
liabilities
18
17
Current portion of long-term debt
8
7
Total current liabilities
982
831
Long-term debt, net of unamortized debt
discount and debt issuance costs
1,355
1,355
Deferred tax liabilities
5
5
Pension liabilities
176
183
Long-term operating lease liabilities
56
55
Earnout derivative liabilities
59
77
Other non-current liabilities
28
33
Total liabilities
2,661
2,539
Commitments and Contingencies
Shareholders’ equity:
Class A common stock (par value $0.0001;
3,000,000,000 shares authorized; 472,617,208 shares and 467,092,817
shares issued and outstanding as of March 31, 2024 and December 31,
2023, respectively)
—
—
Additional paid-in capital
2,751
2,748
Accumulated deficit
(1,456
)
(1,437
)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss
(124
)
(103
)
Total equity of the Company’s
shareholders
1,171
1,208
Equity attributable to non-controlling
interest in subsidiaries
3
4
Total shareholders’ equity
1,174
1,212
Total liabilities and shareholders’
equity
$
3,835
$
3,751
GLOBAL BUSINESS TRAVEL GROUP,
INC. CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(Unaudited)
Three months ended
March 31,
(in $ millions)
2024
2023
Operating activities:
Net loss
$
(19
)
$
(27
)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net
cash from (used in) operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization
47
46
Deferred tax charge (benefit)
17
(9
)
Equity-based compensation
18
19
Allowance for credit losses
4
6
Fair value movement on earnout derivative
liabilities
(18
)
(3
)
Other
(9
)
—
Changes in working capital:
Accounts receivable
(95
)
(163
)
Prepaid expenses and other current
assets
(43
)
(47
)
Due from affiliates
5
8
Due to affiliates
5
37
Accounts payable, accrued expenses and
other current liabilities
144
63
Defined benefit pension funding
(7
)
(7
)
Net cash from (used in) operating
activities
49
(77
)
Investing activities:
Purchase of property and equipment
(25
)
(32
)
Net cash used in investing activities
(25
)
(32
)
Financing activities:
Proceeds from senior secured term
loans
—
131
Repayment of senior secured term loans
(1
)
(1
)
Contributions for ESPP and proceeds from
exercise of stock options
4
1
Payment of taxes withheld on vesting of
equity awards
(12
)
(8
)
Repayment of finance lease obligations
—
(2
)
Payment of debt financing costs
—
(2
)
Other
(1
)
3
Net cash (used in) from financing
activities
(10
)
122
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash,
cash equivalents and restricted cash
(5
)
4
Net increase in cash, cash equivalents and
restricted cash
9
17
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted
cash, beginning of period
489
316
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted
cash, end of period
$
498
$
333
Supplemental cash flow information:
Cash (refund)/paid for income taxes,
net
$
(11
)
$
2
Cash paid for interest (net of interest
received)
$
34
$
33
Non-cash additions for operating lease
right-of-use assets
$
6
$
5
Glossary of Terms
B2B refers to business-to-business.
Customer retention rate is calculated based on Total
Transaction Value (TTV).
CWT refers to CWT Holdings, LLC.
LTM refers to the last twelve months ended March 31,
2024.
SME refers to clients Amex GBT considers
small-to-medium-sized enterprises (“SME”), which Amex GBT generally
defines as having an expected annual spend on air travel of less
than $20 million. This criterion can vary by country and client
needs.
SME New Wins Value is calculated using expected annual
average Total Transaction Value (TTV) over the contract term from
new SME client wins over the last twelve months.
Total New Wins Value is calculated using expected annual
average Total Transaction Value (TTV) over the contract term from
all new client wins over the last twelve months.
Total Transaction Value or TTV refers to the sum of the
total price paid by travelers for air, hotel, rail, car rental and
cruise bookings, including taxes and other charges applied by
suppliers at point of sale, less cancellations and refunds.
Transaction Growth (Decline) represents year-over-year
increase or decrease as a percentage of the total transactions,
including air, hotel, car rental, rail or other travel-related
transactions, recorded at the time of booking, and is calculated on
a net basis to exclude cancellations, refunds and exchanges. To
calculate year-over-year growth or decline, we compare the total
number of transactions in the comparative previous period/ year to
the total number of transactions in the current period/year in
percentage terms. For the three months ended March 31, 2024, we
have presented Transaction Growth (Decline) on a net basis to
exclude cancellations, refunds and exchanges as management believes
this better aligns Transaction Growth (Decline) with the way we
measure TTV and earn revenue. Prior period Transaction Growth
percentages have been recalculated and represented to conform to
current period presentation.
Yield is calculated as total revenue divided by Total
Transaction Value (TTV) for the same period.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We report our financial results in accordance with GAAP. Our
non-GAAP financial measures are provided in addition, and should
not be considered as an alternative, to other performance or
liquidity measures derived in accordance with GAAP. Non-GAAP
financial measures have limitations as analytical tools, and you
should not consider them either in isolation or as a substitute for
analyzing our results as reported under GAAP. In addition, because
not all companies use identical calculations, the presentations of
our non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to other
similarly titled measures of other companies and can differ
significantly from company to company.
Management believes that these non-GAAP financial measures
provide users of our financial information with useful supplemental
information that enables a better comparison of our performance or
liquidity across periods. In addition, we use certain of these
non-GAAP financial measures as performance measures as they are
important metrics used by management to evaluate and understand the
underlying operations and business trends, forecast future results
and determine future capital investment allocations. We also use
certain of our non-GAAP financial measures as indicators of our
ability to generate cash to meet our liquidity needs and to assist
our management in evaluating our financial flexibility, capital
structure and leverage. These non-GAAP financial measures
supplement comparable GAAP measures in the evaluation of the
effectiveness of our business strategies, to make budgeting
decisions, and/or to compare our performance and liquidity against
that of other peer companies using similar measures.
We define EBITDA as net income (loss) before interest income,
interest expense, gain (loss) on early extinguishment of debt,
benefit from (provision for) income taxes and depreciation and
amortization.
We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income (loss) before interest
income, interest expense, gain (loss) on early extinguishment of
debt, benefit from (provision for) income taxes and depreciation
and amortization and as further adjusted to exclude costs that
management believes are non-core to the underlying business of the
Company, consisting of restructuring, exit and related charges,
integration costs, costs related to mergers and acquisitions,
non-cash equity-based compensation and related employer taxes,
long-term incentive plan costs, certain corporate costs, fair value
movements on earnout derivative liabilities, foreign currency gains
(losses), non-service components of net periodic pension benefit
(costs) and gains (losses) on disposal of businesses.
We define Adjusted EBITDA Margin as Adjusted EBITDA divided by
revenue.
We define Adjusted Operating Expenses as total operating
expenses excluding depreciation and amortization and costs that
management believes are non-core to the underlying business of the
Company, consisting of restructuring, exit and related charges,
integration costs, costs related to mergers and acquisitions,
non-cash equity-based compensation and related employer taxes,
long-term incentive plan costs and certain corporate costs.
EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA Margin and Adjusted
Operating Expenses are supplemental non-GAAP financial measures of
operating performance that do not represent and should not be
considered as alternatives to net income (loss) or total operating
expenses, as determined under GAAP. In addition, these measures may
not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other
companies.
These non-GAAP measures have limitations as analytical tools,
and these measures should not be considered in isolation or as a
substitute for analysis of the Company’s results or expenses as
reported under GAAP. Some of these limitations are that these
measures do not reflect:
- changes in, or cash requirements for, our working capital needs
or contractual commitments;
- our interest expense, or the cash requirements to service
interest or principal payments on our indebtedness;
- our tax expense, or the cash requirements to pay our
taxes;
- recurring, non-cash expenses of depreciation and amortization
of property and equipment and definite-lived intangible assets and,
although these are non-cash expenses, the assets being depreciated
and amortized may have to be replaced in the future;
- the non-cash expense of stock-based compensation, which has
been, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, an
important part of how we attract and retain our employees and a
significant recurring expense in our business;
- restructuring, mergers and acquisition and integration costs,
all of which are intrinsic of our acquisitive business model;
and
- impact on earnings or changes resulting from matters that are
non-core to our underlying business, as we believe they are not
indicative of our underlying operations.
EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA Margin and Adjusted
Operating Expenses should not be considered as a measure of
liquidity or as a measure determining discretionary cash available
to us to reinvest in the growth of our business or as measures of
cash that will be available to us to meet our obligations.
We believe that the adjustments applied in presenting EBITDA,
Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA Margin and Adjusted Operating
Expenses are appropriate to provide additional information to
investors about certain material non-cash and other items that
management believes are non-core to our underlying business.
We use these measures as performance measures as they are
important metrics used by management to evaluate and understand the
underlying operations and business trends, forecast future results
and determine future capital investment allocations. These non-GAAP
measures supplement comparable GAAP measures in the evaluation of
the effectiveness of our business strategies, to make budgeting
decisions, and to compare our performance against that of other
peer companies using similar measures. We also believe that EBITDA,
Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA Margin and Adjusted Operating
Expenses are helpful supplemental measures to assist potential
investors and analysts in evaluating our operating results across
reporting periods on a consistent basis.
We define Free Cash Flow as net cash from (used in) operating
activities, less cash used for additions to property and
equipment.
We believe Free Cash Flow is an important measure of our
liquidity. This measure is a useful indicator of our ability to
generate cash to meet our liquidity demands. We use this measure to
conduct and evaluate our operating liquidity. We believe it
typically presents an alternate measure of cash flow since
purchases of property and equipment are a necessary component of
our ongoing operations and it provides useful information regarding
how cash provided by operating activities compares to the property
and equipment investments required to maintain and grow our
platform. We believe Free Cash Flow provides investors with an
understanding of how assets are performing and measures
management’s effectiveness in managing cash.
Free Cash Flow is a non-GAAP measure and may not be comparable
to similarly named measures used by other companies. This measure
has limitations in that it does not represent the total increase or
decrease in the cash balance for the period, nor does it represent
cash flow for discretionary expenditures. This measure should not
be considered as a measure of liquidity or cash flow from
operations as determined under GAAP. This measure is not a
measurement of our financial performance under GAAP and should not
be considered in isolation or as an alternative to net income
(loss) or any other performance measures derived in accordance with
GAAP or as an alternative to cash flow from operating activities as
a measure of liquidity.
We define Net Debt as total debt outstanding consisting of the
current and non-current portion of long-term debt, net of
unamortized debt discount and unamortized debt issuance costs,
minus cash and cash equivalents. Net Debt is a non-GAAP measure and
may not be comparable to similarly named measures used by other
companies. This measure is not a measurement of our indebtedness as
determined under GAAP and should not be considered in isolation or
as an alternative to assess our total debt or any other measures
derived in accordance with GAAP or as an alternative to total debt.
Management uses Net Debt to review our overall liquidity, financial
flexibility, capital structure and leverage. Further, we believe
that certain debt rating agencies, creditors and credit analysts
monitor our Net Debt as part of their assessment of our
business.
Tabular Reconciliations for Non-GAAP Measures
Reconciliation of net loss to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA:
Three months ended March
31,
(in $ millions)
2024
2023
Net loss
$
(19
)
$
(27
)
Interest expense
33
34
Provision for (benefit from) income
taxes
27
(8
)
Depreciation and amortization
47
46
EBITDA
88
45
Restructuring, exit and related charges
(a)
9
23
Integration costs (b)
6
8
Mergers and acquisitions (c)
19
—
Equity-based compensation and related
employer taxes (d)
22
19
Fair value movement on earnout derivative
liabilities (e)
(18
)
(3
)
Other adjustments, net (f)
(3
)
7
Adjusted EBITDA
$
123
$
99
Net loss margin
(3
)%
(5
)%
Adjusted EBITDA Margin
20
%
17
%
Reconciliation of total operating expenses to Adjusted Operating
Expenses:
Three months ended March
31,
(in $ millions)
2024
2023
Total operating expenses
$
594
$
587
Adjustments:
Depreciation and amortization
(47
)
(46
)
Restructuring, exit and related charges
(a)
(9
)
(23
)
Integration costs (b)
(6
)
(8
)
Mergers and acquisitions (c)
(19
)
—
Equity-based compensation and related
employer taxes (d)
(22
)
(19
)
Other adjustments, net (f)
(4
)
(12
)
Adjusted Operating Expenses
$
487
$
479
a)
Represents employee severance
costs.
b)
Represents expenses related to
the integration of businesses acquired.
c)
Represents expenses related to
business acquisitions, including potential business acquisitions,
and includes pre-acquisition due diligence and related activities
costs.
d)
Represents non-cash equity-based
compensation expense and employer taxes paid related to equity
incentive awards to certain employees.
e)
Represents fair value movements
on earnout derivative liabilities during the periods.
f)
Adjusted Operating Expenses
excludes (i) long-term incentive plan expense of $3 million and $7
million for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023,
respectively, and (ii) legal and professional services costs of $1
million and $5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2024
and 2023, respectively. Adjusted EBITDA additionally excludes (i)
unrealized foreign exchange gains of $8 million and $6 million for
the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively, and
(ii) non-service component of our net periodic pension cost related
to our defined benefit pension plans of $1 million and $1 million
for the three months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023,
respectively.
Reconciliation of net cash from (used in) operating activities
to Free Cash Flow:
Three months ended March
31,
($ in millions)
2024
2023
Net cash from (used in) operating
activities
$
49
$
(77
)
Less: Purchase of property and
equipment
(25
)
(32
)
Free Cash Flow
$
24
$
(109
)
Reconciliation of Net Debt:
As of
(in $ millions)
March 31, 2024
December 31, 2023
March 31, 2023
Current portion of long-term debt
$
8
$
7
$
4
Long-term debt, net of unamortized debt
discount and debt issuance costs
1,355
1,355
1,351
Total debt, net of unamortized debt
discount and debt issuance costs
1,363
1,362
1,355
Less: Cash and cash equivalents
(475
)
(476
)
(320
)
Net Debt
$
888
$
886
$
1,035
LTM Adjusted EBITDA
$
404
$
380
$
230
Net Debt / LTM Adjusted EBITDA
2.2x
2.3x
4.5x
Reconciliation of Full-Year 2024 Adjusted EBITDA and Free
Cash Flow Guidance
The Company’s full-year 2024 guidance considers various material
assumptions. Because the guidance is forward-looking and reflects
numerous estimates and assumptions with respect to future industry
performance under various scenarios as well as assumptions for
competition, general business, economic, market and financial
conditions and matters specific to the business of Amex GBT, all of
which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the
control of Amex GBT, actual results may differ materially from the
guidance due to a number of factors, including the ultimate
inaccuracy of any of the assumptions described above and the risks
and other factors discussed in the section entitled
“Forward-Looking Statements” below and the risk factors in the
Company’s SEC filings.
The guidance below does not incorporate the impact of the CWT
acquisition, which is expected to close in the second half of
2024.
Adjusted EBITDA guidance for the year ending December 31, 2024
consists of expected net loss for the year ending December 31,
2024, adjusted for: (i) interest expense of approximately $120-125
million; (ii) income taxes of approximately $60 million - $70
million; (iii) depreciation and amortization of property and
equipment of approximately $180-185 million; (iv) restructuring
costs of approximately $30-35 million; (v) integration expenses and
costs related to mergers and acquisitions of approximately $30-35
million; (vi) non-cash equity-based compensation of approximately
$80-85 million, and; (vii) other adjustments, including long-term
incentive plan costs, legal and professional services costs,
non-service component of our net periodic pension benefit (cost)
related to our defined benefit pension plans and foreign exchange
gains and losses of approximately $20 million. We are unable to
reconcile Adjusted EBITDA to net income (loss) determined under
U.S. GAAP due to the unavailability of information required to
reasonably predict certain reconciling items such as impairment of
long-lived assets and right-of-use assets, fair value movement on
earnout derivative liabilities and/or loss on early extinguishment
of debt and the related tax impact of these adjustments. The exact
amount of these adjustments is not currently determinable but may
be significant.
Free Cash Flow guidance for the year ending December 31, 2024
consists of expected net cash from operating activities of greater
than $230-250 million less capitalized expenditures of
approximately $130-150 million.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains statements that are forward-looking and as
such are not historical facts. This includes, without limitation,
statements regarding our financial position, business strategy, the
plans and objectives of management for future operations and fourth
quarter and full-year guidance. These statements constitute
projections, forecasts and forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,”
“expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,”
“potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “will,” “would” and
similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but
the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not
forward-looking.
The forward-looking statements contained in this release are
based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future
developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no
assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that
we have anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a
number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond our
control) or other assumptions that may cause actual results or
performance to be materially different from those expressed or
implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and
uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following risks,
uncertainties and other factors: (1) changes to projected financial
information or our ability to achieve our anticipated growth rate
and execute on industry opportunities; (2) our ability to maintain
our existing relationships with customers and suppliers and to
compete with existing and new competitors; (3) various conflicts of
interest that could arise among us, affiliates and investors; (4)
our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, our
officers, key employees or directors; (5) factors relating to our
business, operations and financial performance, including market
conditions and global and economic factors beyond our control; (6)
the impact of geopolitical conflicts, including the war in Ukraine
and the conflicts in the Middle East, as well as related changes in
base interest rates, inflation and significant market volatility on
our business, the travel industry, travel trends and the global
economy generally; (7) the sufficiency of our cash, cash
equivalents and investments to meet our liquidity needs; (8) the
effect of a prolonged or substantial decrease in global travel on
the global travel industry; (9) political, social and macroeconomic
conditions (including the widespread adoption of teleconference and
virtual meeting technologies which could reduce the number of
in-person business meetings and demand for travel and our
services); (10) the effect of legal, tax and regulatory changes;
(11) the impact of any future acquisitions including the
integration of any acquisition and (12) other risks and
uncertainties described in the Company’s Form 10-K, filed with the
SEC on March 13, 2024, and in the Company’s other SEC filings.
Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or
should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may
vary in material respects from those projected in these
forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update or
revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required
under applicable securities laws.
Disclaimer
An investment in Global Business Travel Group, Inc. is not an
investment in American Express. American Express shall not be
responsible in any manner whatsoever for, and in respect of, the
statements herein, all of which are made solely by Global Business
Travel Group, Inc.
______________________ A reconciliation of non-GAAP financial
measures to the most comparable GAAP measures is provided at the
end of this release. 1There were 62.5 average workdays in Q1 2024
compared to 63.2 average workdays in Q1 2023; percentages are
adjusted to reflect growth metrics assuming 62.5 workdays in each
period. 2Leverage ratio is calculated as Net Debt / LTM Adjusted
EBITDA and is different than leverage ratio defined in our senior
secured credit agreement.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240507465669/en/
Media: Martin Ferguson Vice President Global Communications and
Public Affairs martin.ferguson@amexgbt.com
Investors: Jennifer Thorington Vice President Investor Relations
investor@amexgbt.com
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