HomeAway Books a First-Quarter Profit Ahead of IPO

HomeAway, which is seeking to raise $230 million in an initial public offering, updated its registration statement today to include its first-quarter results.

The company operates one of the largest online vacation rental marketplaces under various brands including VacationRentals.com and VRBO.com.

It said first-quarter revenues totaled $52 million, rising 44 percent compared to the year-ago period’s revenues of $36.1 million.

The company also recorded a profit of $1.5 million, reversing a loss of $803,000 in the same period a year earlier. However, after paying out more than $9 million in stock dividends, the loss attributable to common shareholders amounted to $7.5 million.

The company’s adjusted earnings can be a more reliable gauge because it eliminates many non-cash items, such as stock-based compensation and depreciation.

Adjusted EBITDA totaled $10.2 million in the first quarter, nearly doubling from the year-ago period when it recorded earnings of $5.8 million.

Many of the metrics for the Austin, Texas-based company are also on the rise.

Today, it operates 31 sites in 11 languages in more than 145 countries. Its marketplace included more than 560,000 paid listings of vacation rentals, up from 499,000 a year ago. The average revenue per listing is also increased to $328 from $290 in the same period.