BTIG analysts no longer recommend buying TripAdvisor stock. It's losing out to AI

BTIG has downgraded its rating on shares of TripAdvisor, the owner of the travel portal of the same name, which has a market capitalization of $1.6 billion. Analysts note that advances in artificial intelligence are increasing risks to the company’s business, while its long-term growth strategy remains unclear.

BTIG downgraded TripAdvisor's stock rating from "Buy" to "Hold," according to Investing.com.

Analysts attribute the decline in the company's rating to the fact that its business is increasingly subject to changes in online searches for travel services driven by the development of artificial intelligence.

AI-powered summaries and “clickless” search (where users get answers to their questions directly on the search engine page) are reducing traffic to websites operated by TripAdvisor. Among the main ones are the eponymous travel portal, the tour booking service Viator, and the restaurant reservation service TheFork. TripAdvisor plans to sell TheFork to American Express for $700 million.

In addition, BTIG believes that the role of major technology platforms in travel planning is growing, which is also putting pressure on TripAdvisor's business.

Analysts at a brokerage firm lowered their revenue forecasts for TripAdvisor by just under 1%—to $561 million for the third quarter and to $427 million for the fourth. Both figures are slightly below Wall Street’s consensus estimate, according to Yahoo Finance. In the first quarter, the company’s revenue fell 4% to $382.4 million.

Following the downgrade, BTIG did not set a price target for TripAdvisor shares, according to Yahoo Finance. Analysts stated that although the stock is trading at a low multiple—approximately 5.5 times the expected 2026 EBITDA—they believe this is fair, according to Investing.com. BTIG explained its position by noting that the sale of TheFork provides little clarity regarding TripAdvisor’s long-term strategy.

Wall Street is generally cautious about TripAdvisor’s outlook. The company’s stock has eight “hold” ratings from analysts, four “buy” ratings, and the same number of “sell” ratings. The average price target is $13.8, which is in line with current trading prices.