By Guy Taylor
On the Beach will report its full-year results on Tuesday, which is expected to give an early indication of demand for holidays in 2024.
The online holiday retailer has cashed in on resurgent demand for holidays this year as the sector rebounds from Covid-era lows.
A trading update on 13 September sent shares soaring 14 per cent after the holiday firm revealed record summer bookings. The group is currently forecasting pre-tax profits at the top end of market expectations.
A key focus of analysts will be winter bookings, which were up 26 per cent this year and suggest strong demand is unlikely to fall off anytime soon. Investors will, however, have to wait until Christmas to get a clear picture of bookings for summer 2024, which do not begin in earnest until the turn of the year.
“This strong growth in winter bookings is significant, we believe, because winter holidays are typically second holidays; if there were weakness now, it would be a lead indicator of the consumer cutting holiday spend,” Peel Hunt analyst Ivor Jones said.
Peel Hunt is forecasting full-year revenue growth next year, partly driven by its shift to five-star holidays.
