Citing AI risks, BTIG downgrades Tripadvisor to 'hold'

BTIG has downgraded to "hold" shares of Tripadvisor, the $1.6 billion travel company. The development of AI is increasing risks to the business, while its long-term strategy remains unclear, the BTIG analysts said.

BTIG has downgraded Tripadvisor shares to “hold” from “buy,” Investing.com reported. The downgrade is attributable to AI-driven changes in how travelers search for services online, from which Tripadvisor is increasingly suffering.

AI-powered search summaries and “zero-click” search – when users receive answers directly on a search-results page – are reducing traffic to Tripadvisor’s sites. Its main platforms include the namesake travel site, tours and activities booking service Viator, and restaurant reservation platform TheFork. Tripadvisor recently agreed to sell TheFork to American Express for $700 million. The growing role of large technology platforms in travel planning is also putting pressure on Tripadvisor’s business, notes BTIG.

The analysts lowered their Tripadvisor revenue estimates by less than 1%, to $561 million for the third quarter and $427 million for the fourth quarter. Both figures are slightly below Wall Street consensus estimates, according to Yahoo Finance data. The company’s first-quarter revenue fell 4% year over year to $382.4 million.

BTIG did not assign a target price to Tripadvisor shares following the downgrade, according to Yahoo Finance data. The analysts said that although the shares trade at an inexpensive valuation of roughly 5.5 times expected 2026 EBITDA, they appear fairly priced. Looking forward, BTIG noted that the completion of TheFork sale leaves little visibility for additional strategic actions.

Wall Street is broadly cautious about Tripadvisor. The stock has eight “hold” ratings from analysts versus four “buy” and four “sell” ratings. The average target price is $13.80 per share, in line with the current share price.