Pursuits
Expedia Nabs Bargain With Orbitz Deal to Reclaim Lead: Real M&A
No Money in Airline Tickets, Economics in Hotels
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Online travel-booking sites promise great deals for users. Today, Expedia Inc. landed one for its shareholders.
Expedia announced it’s buying rival Orbitz Worldwide Inc. for $1.6 billion including net debt, a move that will help it win back the industry’s top post from Priceline Inc. Cost reductions from combining the two businesses will also increase Bellevue, Washington-based Expedia’s earnings by 75 cents per share, or about 25 percent. The stock surged right along with shares of Orbitz, gaining as much as 18 percent -- a boon for investors who were hurt last week after Expedia’s earnings came up short of analysts’ estimates.