Sabre(SABR) - 2025 Q4 - Earnings Call Transcript

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - In 2025, normalized Adjusted EBITDA increased by 10% year-on-year, reaching $536 million, with the normalized Adjusted EBITDA margin expanding by 166 basis points to 19% [25][9] - Total revenue for 2025 was $2.8 billion, reflecting a 1% year-on-year growth, primarily driven by distribution revenue growth [22][25] - Pro forma free cash flow for the fourth quarter was $116 million, a year-on-year increase of $45 million [24] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Air distribution bookings grew by 4% year-on-year in the fourth quarter, with a total growth of 7% in December [12][22] - Hotel distribution bookings increased by 5% year-on-year, reaching 42 million, with gross hotel booking value exceeding $20 billion annually [13] - Sabre Payments was one of the fastest-growing businesses, with gross spend on the platform increasing by more than 35% year-on-year [11] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - NDC (New Distribution Capability) adoption reached approximately 4% of total air distribution bookings, with 15 live integrations added during the year [12] - The company expects mid-single-digit volume growth for both 2026 and 2027, driven by continued share gains and growth in NDC bookings [28][32] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is transitioning from a GDS-focused model to an AI-native technology leader, emphasizing the importance of AI in enhancing travel workflows [6][7] - Recent executive leadership changes were announced to align with the new AI strategy, including the promotion of Garry Wiseman to President of Product and Engineering [8] - The company aims to leverage its extensive travel data and proprietary logic to become essential in the evolving AI ecosystem [16][18] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed confidence in the company's positioning for strong, sustained performance, despite challenges faced in 2025 [5] - The outlook for 2026 includes expectations for mid-single-digit revenue growth, driven by share gains and the introduction of new solutions [28][32] - Management highlighted the importance of maintaining operational delivery and R&D while managing costs through an inflation offset program [56][57] Other Important Information - The company paid off over $1 billion in debt in 2025, significantly improving its capital structure and reducing pro forma net leverage by approximately 25% compared to year-end 2024 [9][26] - The company ended 2025 with a strong cash balance of $910 million, which includes $98 million in restricted cash for debt repayments [10][25] Q&A Session Summary Question: What still needs to be done on the AI front, and what upside opportunities from AI might evolve? - Management indicated that the next stage involves demonstrating the end-to-end experience of conversational commerce in travel, with partnerships like Mindtrip and PayPal enhancing the customer experience [36][41] Question: Does the introduction of GenAI change the economic equation for direct connects? - Management explained that Sabre's scalable marketplace allows for faster response times and better content management compared to direct connects, which can be costly for suppliers [47][50] Question: Can you elaborate on the inflation offset program? - The program aims to keep key cost items flat despite inflation, focusing on efficiency and productivity improvements through geographical leverage and AI integration [53][56] Question: How is corporate travel performing, and where is the strength coming from? - Corporate travel is showing positive signs across both traditional players and new entrants, indicating a healthier market environment compared to the previous year [80] Question: What is the outlook for free cash flow and discussions with debt holders? - Management expects to generate positive free cash flow in 2027, with a strong cash balance and no large maturities until 2029 [76][64]

Sabre(SABR) - 2025 Q4 - Earnings Call Transcript - Reportify