On the Beach Group (LSE:OTB), the online holiday group, said demand has stabilised after a period of disruption linked to the conflict in the Middle East, allowing the board to reinstate full-year guidance.
The company withdrew its outlook at its annual general meeting but said today it is confident of delivering adjusted profit before tax of between £18 million and £25 million for financial year 2026.
Bookings over the six weeks since the half-year end are up 9% as the key summer departure months approach.
The Middle East conflict has weighed on consumer demand across the travel sector since March, despite On the Beach having limited direct exposure to affected destinations.
For the six months to 31 March, adjusted revenue fell to £52.9 million from £59.3 million, reflecting competitive pricing in a challenging environment and an industry-wide shift towards later booking patterns for higher-value summer holidays.
Adjusted EBITDA halved to £6.4 million from £12.8 million, while adjusted profit before tax fell to £2.3 million from £8.4 million.
The group reported a statutory pre-tax loss of £3.2 million against a £4.5 million profit in the prior year.
Despite the revenue pressure, booking volumes hit a record 324,000, up 7% and significantly ahead of the wider market, which grew 3% on an ATOL basis.
Travelled volumes rose 22% to 201,600.
The company pointed to strong strategic progress, with search funnel conversion up 24%, app monthly active users up 29% and in-year repeat bookings up 24%.
Growth in expansion areas was particularly striking, with city break volumes such as Krakow and Amsterdam up 116% and Republic of Ireland bookings up 74%.
On the Beach said it is also poised to enter the cruise market and has launched its app within ChatGPT as part of a broader push to embed artificial intelligence across the business.
Net debt improved by £2 million to £27.5 million, and the board declared an interim dividend of 1.0 pence per share, unchanged from last year.
Shaun Morton, chief executive, said consumers value their summer holiday highly and he was confident the group would deliver a solid summer performance.