Online Travel Agencies Experience Relief Rally After OpenAI's Shift
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Mar 06 2026
0mins
Should l Buy EXPE?
Source: Benzinga
- AI Strategic Shift: OpenAI's decision to pause its ambitions for direct travel bookings alleviates investor fears that generative AI could disrupt traditional travel platforms, creating a rebound opportunity for online travel agencies.
- Real-Time Data Challenges: Industry observers note that managing real-time pricing and inventory for travel is technically challenging, indicating that OpenAI still needs to rely on traditional intermediaries for complex global logistics.
- Reaffirmation of Intermediary Value: Analyst Richard Clarke states that OpenAI's pivot is incrementally positive for online travel agencies, allowing companies like Booking and Expedia to continue engaging consumers on AI platforms and reducing the risk of disintermediation.
- Positive Market Reaction: With OpenAI shifting back to a partnership model, the threat of an AI takeover in the travel industry appears to be fading quickly, significantly restoring market confidence in travel-related stocks.
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Analyst Views on EXPE
Wall Street analysts forecast EXPE stock price to rise
28 Analyst Rating
9 Buy
19 Hold
0 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 225.810
Low
220.00
Averages
284.79
High
360.00
Current: 225.810
Low
220.00
Averages
284.79
High
360.00
About EXPE
Expedia Group, Inc. is an online travel company. The Company’s segments include B2C, B2B, and trivago. The B2C segment provides a full range of travel and advertising services to its worldwide customers through a variety of consumer brands including: Expedia.com, Hotels.com, Vrbo, Orbitz, Travelocity, Wotif Group, ebookers, CheapTickets, Hotwire.com and CarRentals.com. The B2B segment fuels a wide range of travel and non-travel companies, including airlines, offline travel agents, online retailers, corporate travel management and financial institutions, who leverage travel technology and tap into its diverse supply to augment their offerings and market Expedia Group rates and availabilities to their travelers. Its trivago segment generates advertising revenue primarily from sending referrals to online travel companies and travel service providers from its hotel metasearch Websites. The trivago is its majority-owned hotel metasearch company, based in Dusseldorf, Germany.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
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- AI Potential Analysis: The analyst noted that OpenAI's shift towards advertising instead of direct checkout, along with Google's commitment to remain a source of referral traffic, indicates that large internet players will benefit from the evolution of large language models (LLMs), thereby consolidating market share.
- Price Target Setting: Jefferies set a price target of $300 for Expedia, implying a ~14X 2027 GAAP P/E, while Instacart's target was set at $45, equating to a 15X 2027 GAAP P/E, showcasing optimism about future growth for both companies.
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- AI Potential: Analyst Colantuoni highlighted that artificial intelligence could serve as a tailwind for Expedia, improving recommendation engines, reducing customer acquisition costs, enhancing product velocity, and lowering customer service expenses, thereby driving long-term growth.
- Competitive Advantage: Despite internet stocks declining approximately 30%, Expedia is viewed as a beneficiary of the proliferation of AI tools, particularly as its marketing scale positions it favorably in a fragmented hotel industry for traffic acquisition.
- Foundation for Sustainable Growth: Over the past two years, Expedia has made significant strides in key product investments and management priority refreshes, laying a foundation for more sustainable growth, even as Wall Street's overall consensus remains cautious.
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EXPEDIA GROUP STOCK INCREASES 2.2% FOLLOWING JEFFERIES UPGRADE TO BUY
- Stock Performance: Expedia Group shares increased by 2.2% following a positive upgrade from Jeffries.
- Analyst Upgrade: Jeffries has upgraded Expedia Group's stock rating to "Buy," contributing to the rise in share value.
See More
Jefferies Upgrades Expedia and Instacart on AI Potential
- Rating Upgrade: Jefferies analyst John Colantuoni upgraded Expedia (EXPE) and Instacart (CART) to a Buy rating, viewing the recent stock sell-off as a buying opportunity, which reflects market recognition of the AI potential for both internet companies.
- AI Potential Analysis: The analyst noted that OpenAI's shift towards advertising instead of direct checkout, along with Google's commitment to remain a source of referral traffic, indicates that large internet players will benefit from the evolution of large language models (LLMs), thereby consolidating market share.
- Price Target Setting: Jefferies set a price target of $300 for Expedia, implying a ~14X 2027 GAAP P/E, while Instacart's target was set at $45, equating to a 15X 2027 GAAP P/E, showcasing optimism about future growth for both companies.
- Stock Price Reaction: Following Jefferies' report, Expedia's shares rose 2.7% in premarket trading, while Instacart increased by 1.4%, reflecting a positive market response to the analysts' outlook.
See More
Latest Wall Street Rating Updates
- UBS Upgrade: UBS upgrades Adecoagro from Neutral to Buy, raising the price target from $8 to $16.2, indicating the company is poised to benefit from the ongoing Middle East conflict, which is expected to enhance its financial performance.
- HSBC Bullish on Carnival: HSBC upgrades Carnival from Hold to Buy, asserting that the current share price undervalues the resilience of experience-led demand, which is likely to improve the company's market performance in the near future.
- Morgan Stanley Reiterates Meta: Morgan Stanley lowers its price target for Meta from $825 to $775 but maintains it as a top investment idea, suggesting that market sentiment has bottomed out, making it an opportune time to buy.
- Deutsche Bank Upgrades Colgate: Deutsche Bank upgrades Colgate-Palmolive from Hold to Buy, highlighting the company's core business as having long-term investment value and the ability to weather current market volatility effectively.
See More
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- Rating Upgrade: Jefferies upgraded Expedia's rating from hold to buy and raised its price target from $240 to $300, implying a roughly 32% upside from Friday's close, reflecting a positive outlook on the company's future performance.
- AI Potential: Analyst Colantuoni highlighted that artificial intelligence could serve as a tailwind for Expedia, improving recommendation engines, reducing customer acquisition costs, enhancing product velocity, and lowering customer service expenses, thereby driving long-term growth.
- Competitive Advantage: Despite internet stocks declining approximately 30%, Expedia is viewed as a beneficiary of the proliferation of AI tools, particularly as its marketing scale positions it favorably in a fragmented hotel industry for traffic acquisition.
- Foundation for Sustainable Growth: Over the past two years, Expedia has made significant strides in key product investments and management priority refreshes, laying a foundation for more sustainable growth, even as Wall Street's overall consensus remains cautious.
See More
Sysco's Jetro Acquisition Leads to Stock Drop
- Sysco Acquisition Deal: Sysco's agreement to acquire Jetro Restaurant Depot for an enterprise value of $29.1 billion has led to a 4.5% drop in its stock, reflecting market concerns about the integration despite the deal being termed 'immediately accretive' and expected to close in Q3 2027.
- Avis Stock Fluctuation: After a remarkable 48% surge last week, Avis shares fell over 9% as investors took profits amid chaos at U.S. airports, indicating market sensitivity to short-term gains and profit-taking behavior.
- Alcoa Price Surge: Alcoa's stock rose more than 9% as aluminum prices increased by over 4.5% following Iranian missile strikes on critical infrastructure in the Middle East, suggesting a bullish outlook on aluminum demand in the wake of geopolitical tensions.
- CrowdStrike Analyst Support: CrowdStrike shares gained over 2.5% after Wolfe Research upgraded the stock to outperform, with analysts believing the company will benefit from increased cyber risks associated with artificial intelligence, despite ongoing fears of AI disrupting cybersecurity technologies.
See More
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- Platform Launch: VisionStay.co/en officially launches its digital promotion platform aimed at eliminating middleman fees by providing direct links to global brands like top medical clinics and Amazon, thereby offering a transparent service experience for international users.
- Zero-Service Fee Model: Amid global inflation, the platform introduces a zero-service fee model, allowing users to access Istanbul's premier medical clinics directly, avoiding additional costs from agencies and enhancing economic benefits for users.
- Multi-Sector Ecosystem: VisionStay.co/en establishes official partnerships with international travel platforms like Hotels.com and Expedia, ensuring seamless bookings, while also providing direct access to the world's largest marketplaces such as Amazon and AliExpress, guaranteeing users receive official pricing.
- Transparency Mission: Founder Alper Yilmaz emphasizes that VisionStay.co/en is not an agency but a digital publisher, committed to enabling users to reach the source directly, thereby enhancing service transparency and user freedom.
See More
