Web Travel Group Ltd (ASX: WEB) shares are on the move on Tuesday morning.
At the time of writing, the ASX 200 travel stock is up 11% to $4.50.
This compares to the performance of the ASX 200 index, which is down 0.2% in early trade.
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Why is this ASX 200 stock jumping?
Investors have been buying the business to business travel technology company's shares following the release of a first half update for its WebBeds business.
WebBeds is a global marketplace for the travel trade. The company notes that it provides powerful hotel distribution solutions that make selling and buying travel products easier.
According to the release, demand grew strongly for WebBeds for the six months ended 30 September.
Web Travel revealed that it recorded WebBeds booking volumes of 5.07 million for the period. This is up a sizeable 17.9% on the 4.3 million recorded in the prior corresponding period. This is in line with its guidance for "Up mid to high teens (%)".
It was similar story for its total transaction value (TTV) for the first half. Web Travel posted TTV of $3.17 billion for the six months. This is an increase of 22.4% on the $2.59 billion it achieved in the prior corresponding period. It also compares favourably to its guidance of "at least $3.1 billion."
In light of this, management believes the ASX 200 stock is on track to achieve its TTV margin guidance of at least 6.5% in FY 2026. It said:
FY26 TTV margins continue to be on track to be at least 6.5% (FY25: 6.7%). As indicated at the Company's 2025 AGM, 1H26 TTV margins are expected to be 6.2 to 6.4% reflecting the sale of the DMC business in March 2025 (that accounted for circa 0.2% of the 6.6% TTV margin in 1H25), as well as portfolio mix changes.
But perhaps the best news is that management is expecting a record result next year. It advised that "Web Travel Group remains on track to deliver record EBITDA in FY26."
For now, though, investors can expect to hear more about its first half performance when the company releases its half-year results towards the end of next month.
Web Travel shares are still down 2% over the past 12 months despite its strong gain on Tuesday.
