Airbnb Looks Expensive, but Game-Changing Business Model Renders Most Metrics Useless

Traditional valuation metrics indicate that home rental pioneer Airbnb (NASDAQ: ABNB) is a vastly overpriced stock with an unfavorable risk/reward profile. At about 17 times estimated revenue for this year, Airbnb isn't going to land on many value investors' desks. The picture doesn't improve when the stock is stacked up against rivals in the online travel booking space, such as VRBO owner Expedia, which is trading at less than four times expected sales.