Orbitz Room Night Growth Slows in Q1 Despite Adding Travelocity Partner Network

Orbitz Worldwide saw its room night growth slow in the first quarter despite adding the Travelocity Partner Network, which it acquired on February 28.

Room nights grew at a 12% pace in the first quarter, down from the 14% growth it posted a year earlier. Orbitz only had the benefit of a boost from the Travelocity affiliate network, which powers Yahoo Travel, for example, for one month during the quarter.

That relatively lackluster 12% hotel room night growth in the quarter compares with the 24% notched by Expedia. Priceline reports its first quarter results later this week.

Orbitz Worldwide saw its gross bookings rise just 3% to $3.2 billion in the quarter, and the Travelocity affiliate network contributed 4 percentage points to that rise.

For the first quarter, Orbitz notched a net loss of $5.9 million, compared with net income of $146.2 million a year earlier. Orbitz attributed the loss to “the release of a $157.5 valuation allowance related to the company’s U.S. federal deferred tax assets in 2013.”

Revenue for the first quarter rose 3.6% to $210.2 million.