Trip.com Group Q4 2024 Earnings Call Transcript

Quartr
Provided by Quartr
February 24, 2025

Key Takeaways

  • Strong net revenue growth of 23% YoY in Q4 and 20% YoY for full year 2024, driven by robust domestic, outbound, and international travel demand.
  • Surge in AI adoption with TripGenie traffic up 200%, browsing time +100%, and conversations +200%, underlining Trip.com Group's commitment to AI-driven personalization.
  • Record-high adjusted EBITDA growth of 22% YoY and improved operating margins, supported by operational efficiencies and AI investments.
  • Board approved a US$400 million share repurchase program and a US$200 million cash dividend for 2025, reflecting strong financial position and shareholder return focus.
  • Inbound travel bookings more than doubled YoY in Q4, with international revenue growing to 14% of group revenues and visa-free entries up 112%, signaling strong global demand.
AI Generated. May Contain Errors.
Earnings Conference Call
Trip.com Group Q4 2024
00:00 / 00:00

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Operator

Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the conference over to your speaker today, Michelle Chi, Senior IR Director. Please go ahead.

Michelle Qi
Michelle Qi
Senior IR Director at Trip.com Group

Thank you. Thank you, everyone. Good morning, and welcome to Triple Crown Group's fourth quarter of twenty twenty four earnings conference call. Joining me today on the call are Ms. James Lam, Executive Chairman of the Board Ms. James Sam, Chief Executive Officer and Ms. Cindy Wong, Chief Financial Officer. During this call, we will discuss our future outlook and performance, which are forward looking statements made under the Safe Harbor provision of The U. S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Michelle Qi
Michelle Qi
Senior IR Director at Trip.com Group

Forward looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. As such, our results may be materially different from the views expressed today. A number of potential risks and uncertainties are outlined in Trip Com Group's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Trip dot com Group does not undertake any obligation to update any forward looking statements, except as required under applicable law. James, Jan and Cindy will share our strategy and business updates, operating highlights and financial performance for the fourth quarter of twenty twenty four and full year of 2024, as well as outlook for the first quarter of twenty twenty five.

Michelle Qi
Michelle Qi
Senior IR Director at Trip.com Group

After the prepared remarks, we will have a Q and A session. With that, I will turn the call over to James. James, please.

James Liang
James Liang
Co Founder, Executive Chairman of the Board at Trip.com Group

Thank you, Michelle, and This shift highlights a broader trend. Consumers are increasingly prioritizing experiences that bring joy and fulfillment over material goods. In 2024, our core OTA businesses achieved a In 2024, our core OTA businesses achieved a GMV of over RMB 1,200,000,000,000.0 or 169,000,000,000 US dollars. At Trip.comGroup, we focus on AI innovation as one of our key priorities. Our suite of AI tools is designed to make travel more accessible and personalized. From the planning phase, we inspire users with tailored recommendations and exclusive deals. Trip Best curates top rated hotels, restaurants, and activities based on millions of user reviews. Trip trends, trip deals, and trip events dynamically adjust in real time to reflect the latest traveler preferences.

James Liang
James Liang
Co Founder, Executive Chairman of the Board at Trip.com Group

Itinerary helps users generate travel plans with interactive routes and daily overviews, which can be easily shared with friends and family. Users can also rely on TripGenie for seamless assistance via voice and text commands in multiple languages throughout their journey. Additionally, they receive intelligent updates for hotels, airport transfers, and activities according to their existing itinerary. In 2024, Trip Genie saw traffic surge by 200%, browsing time increased by nearly 100%, and the total number of conversations rise by 200%. Our international business continues to show robust growth representing 14% of group revenue in Q4 and 10% in 2024.

James Liang
James Liang
Co Founder, Executive Chairman of the Board at Trip.com Group

We are also committed to promoting inbound travel as it fosters cultural exchange and creates job opportunities. Every new visitor creates a ripple effect across industries, from hotels and restaurants to tour operators, reinforcing the travel ecosystem by investing in initiatives to position our country as an attractive destination. We contribute to sustainable growth that benefits the Our commitment to rural revitalization is a key part of our sustainability initiatives. By developing country retreats in rural areas, we support local economies by creating jobs and fostering small businesses. By incorporating renewable energy, sustainable construction practices, and eco friendly materials, we aim to make our retreats green and sustainable, helping to safeguard the planet for future generations.

James Liang
James Liang
Co Founder, Executive Chairman of the Board at Trip.com Group

Looking ahead, we're excited about the opportunities in the evolving travel market. We remain committed to driving innovation and enhancing the traveler experience, and we look forward to another year of growth and success alongside our partners. With that, I will turn the call over to Jane for operational highlights.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

Thank you, James. Good morning, everyone. As a quick overview, our net revenue in q four grew by 23% year over year reflecting the continued strength of travel demand. For the full year of 2024, our total net revenue saw a year over year growth of 20%. Outbound travel continues to show robust growth maintaining the In q four, the industry level cross border flight capacity reached over 80% of the pre pandemic level. Concurrently, our outbound hotel and air ticket bookings have recovered to more than 120% compared to 2019, consistently outperforming the industry by 30 to 40%. In 2024, China saw a remarkable surge in domestic travel with 5,600,000,000 trips taken. This growth highlights travel's increasingly central role in Chinese daily lives. As the sector becomes an economic cornerstone, initiatives such as consumption vouchers are expected to further stimulate travel spending and fuel domestic travel.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

China's inbound travel sector is emerging as a key driver of economic and cultural vibrancy. The extension of the transit visa to two hundred and forty hours and the expansion of visa free arrangements have led to a remarkable surge in international arrivals. Official data shows that in 2024, visa applications rose by 20% year over year, and visa free entries increased by an impressive 112% from the previous year. This influx is fueled by strong demand from diverse source markets. In q four and full year of 2024, inbound travel bookings on our platforms increased by over 100% year over year, with those from visa free countries rising by over 150%.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

In response, Trip.comGroup introduced free city tours for international travelers transiting via Shanghai in early twenty twenty four. In December, we launched a complimentary half day Beijing tour offering free shuttle transfers, multilingual guided the countries including Australia, The United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Singapore have participated. With its rich cultural heritage, stunning landscapes, and favorable travel policies, China's inbound travel market holds immense potential. As global connectivity strengthens, China is well positioned to become one of the world's most cost effective and safe tourist destinations. On the international front, we have strengthened our presence in key APAC markets and successfully expanded into new regions.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

By leveraging our one stop shop model, high quality and the with APAC bookings rising by around 80%. To build on this momentum, we are making strategic investments in technology and talent acquisition. Our 16 global call centers solidify our commitment to maintaining high service standards worldwide. Our workforce has also grown to include thousands of travel professionals across 28 countries. With consistently improving customer service and a global customer satisfaction rate of nearly 90%, Trip dot com has earned multiple accolades including contact center of the year and global support services of the year at the international Customer Relations Excellence Awards, as well as Asia's leading online travel agency 2024 at the World Travel Awards.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

These recognitions underscore our commitment to putting customers first, offering twenty four seven global support and service to international travelers at every stage of their journey. The silver generation presents another exciting opportunity. With over 100,000,000 active and healthy seniors projected in the coming years, the senior travel market is poised to exceed 1,000,000,000,000 RMB in value. In early twenty twenty four, we launched the Old Friends Club initiative to cater to travelers aged 50 and above who now represent 10% of our user base and have 30% higher purchasing power than average. We offer excellent value for money to customers and help suppliers balance demand during off peak seasons, creating a win win solution.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

Currently, users can choose from over 7,000 travel products across more than 50 trending destinations on our Old Friends Club channel, featuring boutique hotels, hot springs, cruises, and more. We plan to expand our selection to meet growing demands. In addition to serving the silver generation, we are excited about trends among younger travelers. Their increased travel spending is evident in the growing demand for experiences such as live concerts, music festivals, exhibitions, and sporting events. To capitalize on this trend, we have introduced our entertainment plus travel offerings, which integrate entertainment with travel, providing young travelers with unique opportunities for dynamic, culture rich experiences.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

Through this initiative, we aim to satisfy their desire for excitement, social connection, and immersive experiences beyond traditional tourism. Committed to serving diverse traveler with innovative offerings, we align our business practices with a broader sense of purpose. Beyond developing country retreats to create jobs and support local center staff can work from with various measures. Call center staff can work from home during Chinese New Year to enjoy family reunions. Additionally, we provide global employees with children 18 an extra three days of paid leave to balance family and career.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

These initiatives have strengthened our reputation as an exemplary employer, earning us numerous best employer awards for our inclusive and nurturing workplace culture. In conclusion, the market outlook is promising with significant growth potential. We are well to the the

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

quarter of twenty twenty four, Trip dot com Group reported a net revenue of 12,700,000,000.0 RMB, representing a 23% increase from the same period last year and a 20% decrease from the previous quarter. For the full year of 2024, net revenue was RMB 53,300,000,000.0 representing a 20% increase year over year. This is primarily due to the resilient travel demand Accommodation reservation revenue for the fourth quarter was 5,200,000,000.0 RMB representing a 33% increase year over year and a 24% decrease quarter over quarter. We have observed robust growth across our domestic, outbound, and international segments. For the full year of 2024, accommodation reservation revenue was 21,600,000,000.0 RMB, representing a 25% increase year over year.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

Transportation ticketing revenue for the fourth quarter was 4,800,000,000.0 RMB representing a 16% increase year over year and a 15% decrease quarter over quarter. Our domestic and outbound air bookings continue to exceed market growth, while our international air business also demonstrates strong expansion. For the full year of 2024. Transportation ticketing revenue was 20,300,000,000.0 RMB, representing a 10% increase year over year. Package tour revenue for the fourth quarter was $8.70 RMB representing a 24% increase year over year and a 44% decrease quarter over quarter.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

The year over year growth was mainly driven by international business which has increased by around 100%. For the full year of 2024, package tour revenue was 4,300,000,000.0 RMB, representing a 38% increase year over year. Corporate travel revenue for the fourth quarter was 702,000,000 RMB, representing an 11% increase year over year and a 7% increase quarter over quarter. This was driven by more companies adopting our managed corporate travel services. For the full year of 2024, corporate revenue was 2,500,000,000.0 RMB, representing an 11% increase year over year.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

Excluding share based compensation charges, adjusted product development expenses for the fourth quarter increased by 18% year over year. Adjusted g and a expenses for the fourth quarter increased by 24% year over year. These are mainly due to increase in personnel related expenses. For the full year of 2024, The combined total of adjusted product development expenses and adjusted G and A expenses increased by 8% year over year. Adjusted sales and marketing expenses for the fourth quarter remained flattish compared to the previous quarter and increased by 45% from the same period last year.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

For the full year of 2024, adjusted sales and marketing expenses as percentage of net revenue was 22% compared to 20% last year. The increase was primarily driven by enhanced marketing efforts, particularly focused on strengthening our global business and brand awareness. Adjusted EBITDA was 3,000,000,000 RMB for the fourth quarter compared with 2,900,000,000.0 RMB in the same period last year and 5,700,000,000.0 RMB in the previous quarter for the full year of 2024 adjusted EBITDA was 17,100,000,000.0 RMB representing a growth of 22% year over year. Diluted earnings per ordinary share and per ADS were 3.09 RMB or 0.42 US dollars for the fourth quarter of twenty twenty four excluding share based compensation charges and fair value changes of equity securities investments and exchangeable senior notes long gap diluted earnings per ordinary share and per ADS were 4.355 RMB or 0.6 US dollars for the fourth quarter. For the full year of 2024, diluted earnings per ordinary share and per ADS were 24.78 RMB or 3.39 US dollars excluding share based compensation charges and fair value changes of equity securities investments and exchangeable senior notes, long gap diluted earnings per ordinary share and per ADS were 26.2 RMB or 3.59 US dollars.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

As of 12/31/2024, the balance of cash and cash equivalents restricted cash short term investment held to maturity time deposit and financial products was RMB 90,000,000,000 or 12,300,000,000.0 US dollars. As part of our ongoing commitment to delivering value to our shareholders and in line with our regular capital return policy, the board of directors has recently authorized the implementation of strategic capital return initiatives for 2025. These initiatives will include a share repurchase program of up to 400,000,000 US dollars and a cash dividend totaling approximately 200,000,000 US dollars. The cash dividend will be 30¢ per ordinary share and per ADS payable to holders of ordinary shares and ADS of record as of 03/17/2025. Dividends to holders of ordinary shares are expected to be paid on or around 03/27/2025.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

And dividends to holders of ADS are expected to be paid on or around 04/04/2025. We believe these initiatives reflect our strong financial position and our continued focus on delivering attractive returns to shareholders. In conclusion, the continued strength across key business segments underscores our ability to execute effectively and adapt to market dynamics. As we advance into 2025, our enhanced capital return program reaffirms our commitment to delivering value to our shareholders. We remain confident in our strategic direction and are dedicated to fostering sustainable growth and long term success. With that, operator, please open the line for questions.

Operator

Thank Our first question is going to come from the line of Brian Gung with Citi. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Brian Gong
Brian Gong
Internet & Media Research at Citi

Good morning, James, James, Cynthia and Michelle. Congratulations on decent first quarter results. I have a very quick question on recent hot topic, AI. With the rise of AI agents and the new large language models, could management share your thoughts? I mean, how do you think all recent exciting development could impact OTAs like Trip.com? Thank you.

James Liang
James Liang
Co Founder, Executive Chairman of the Board at Trip.com Group

Thank you for your question. We focus on the deployment of AI technology through instead they will complement us. They are likely to replace traditional search engines as primary entry points for traffic, opening new customer acquisition channels for OTAs. Trip.com provides value that AI alone cannot replicate, particularly in two areas. Firstly, our extensive real time proprietary travel insights are key to delivering accurate and personalized travel recommendations.

James Liang
James Liang
Co Founder, Executive Chairman of the Board at Trip.com Group

Secondly, our end to end service model and open platform approach enable us to offer competitive service standards and pricing tailored to diverse customer preferences. We recognize the vast potential of generative AI in the travel industry and are committed to furthering our investment in this field. We are eager to introduce more user friendly and valuable features in the future.

Operator

Thank you. And one moment as we move on to our next question. And our next question comes from the line of Alex Yeo with JPMorgan. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Alex Yao
Alex Yao
Co-Head of Asia Technology, Media & Telecommunications at JP Morgan

Thank you, management, for taking my question, and congrats on good quarter. So my question is, how do you view the current leisure and business travel demand? How do you view the growth trajectory for 2025? And lastly, what are the primary drivers that's going to support the revenue growth? Thank you.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

Thank you, Alex. We have seen the tow industry is very resilient, particularly after COVID is over. The surge of the travel demand is really strong. In particular, there are a couple of segments we're targeting in. The first one is domestic travel market.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

We have seen young people have shown great enthusiasm, travel around the world to visit different sites and event plus travel is really a trend for young people. The second traveling force is for the early retired generation. This is the generation which has money, is energetic and is very curious to explore the world. So we have special package for silver generation. The third driving force is the further opening up of the borders.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

We have seen many countries offer relaxed visa restrictions to Chinese travelers. So that gives another engine for us to bring people around the world. And we also see the recovery of direct flights based on the official data. By the end of this year, direct flight will recover to approximately ninety percent to ninety five percent of pre COVID level. So all these factors give us very strong engine for the travel industry's growth.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

And going forward, for the next three to five years, we'll make strong investment to further provide excellent services and comprehensive products for our customers around the world. If you look at Asian market, it's about 150% compared to the China market. So it's huge potential. And our results have shown that we grow in the Asian markets outside of China at a rate of more than 80% year over year. So we'll keep up with this strong investment to make sure we offer services for the global customers. Thank you.

Operator

Thank you. One moment as we move on to our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Yang Liu with Morgan Stanley. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Yang Liu
Yang Liu
Executive Director at Morgan Stanley

Thanks for the opportunity and congrats on the solid results. My question is that your operating margin reached a record high in 2024 over the past decades. How do you expect the margin to trend in 2025 and beyond? Thank you.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

Yes. We actually never set a specific margin target. Instead, we consider margin as a natural outcome of a dynamic business mix and continuous improvement in our operational efficiency across each business unit. In the near term, we will continue to prioritize our overseas business expansion, which are strategic essential for unlocking significant long term growth opportunities as well. Additionally, we are also very excited about the transformative potential of AI driven solutions, which will play a key role in enhancing our operational efficiency, streamlining our operations and mitigating cost pressures over time.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

In the longer term period, we see no structure limitation to our profit margins. It could be comparable to those of our international peers, supported by our innovative strategy, global expansion as well as forward looking investments. Thank you.

Michelle Qi
Michelle Qi
Senior IR Director at Trip.com Group

Thank you.

Operator

One moment as we move on to our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Joyce Ju with Bank of America. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Joyce Ju
Joyce Ju
Analyst at Bank of America

Good morning, James, Jingdi and Michelle. Congrats for the strong results and thanks for taking my question. My question is recent business time related. Could management share updates of your performance during the Chinese New Year and post holiday trend with us? How did hotel price such as ADR or take rate change recently? What is the outlook for 2025? Appreciate any colors.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

Thank you. During the Chinese New Year, we observed several encouraging trends. Firstly, the overall travel demand remains very healthy and many travelers choose to leave earlier or return late to avoid peak traffic, resulting in a more even distribution of demand during and around official public holidays.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

And second, travelers expanded their travel radius to more distant destinations, partly thanks to the longer period of the public holiday period, with cross border trips being particularly popular despite headwinds in certain areas. And our outbound travel booking increased by over 20% year over year, while inbound travel maintained triple digit growth during the Chinese New Year holidays. After the holiday, what we observed is the travel activities maintained a healthy momentum. Thank you. Thank you.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

Sorry, for the hotel prices and outlook for the 2025, the industry data shows that hotel prices are still below last year's level, but are gradually approaching them. The hotel supply increased by mid to high single digit percentage year over year, reflecting continued market confidence in the travel industry. And we believe the ongoing improvement in the travel infrastructure will further benefit the industry in the longer term period. And looking ahead to the year 2025, we anticipate that the growing travel demand and normalizing supplier growth will stabilize the hotel price. Thank you.

Joyce Ju
Joyce Ju
Analyst at Bank of America

Thank you. Cool.

Operator

Thank you. Thank you. One moment as we move on to our next question. And our next question comes from the line of Wei Chung with UBS. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Wei Xiong
Wei Xiong
Equity Research Analyst at UBS Group

Good morning, management. Thank you for taking my question. And congrats on the very good growth this quarter. My question is about the outbound travel. So could you please update on the outlook for outbound flight capacity improvement this year?

Wei Xiong
Wei Xiong
Equity Research Analyst at UBS Group

Have we seen any impact on outbound travel demand from the recent incident in Thailand? Also the higher prices due to FX changes. Also for our group, our outbound travel growth have consistently been outperforming the industry. How do we keep this outperformance going forward? Thank you.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

Thank you. Our outdoor flight capacity reached over 80% of twenty nineteen's level in the fourth quarter and increased further during the Chinese New Year holiday. And according to the CAAC, total international flight capacity could recover to more than 90% by 2025, indicating a double digit year over year growth. Despite headwinds in certain major destinations, our total outbound booking grew by 20% to 30% during the Chinese New Year holiday. We believe that some travelers just simply switch their destinations.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

And with regard to the impact from forex changes, as far as today, there is with no significant we see no significant correlation between the forest rates and the international air price so far. For the continuous outperformed industry growth, what we focus is just by continuously enhancing our product offering as well as the service quality. And with the continuous investment in the trip.com business, we are able to further enhancing our international product offerings. To some extent it will also benefit and fuel our growth for the outbound business travel. Thank you.

Operator

Thank you. And one moment as we move on to our next question. Our next question is going to come from the line of Simon Chung with Goldman Sachs. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Simon Cheung
Simon Cheung
Managing Director at Goldman Sachs

Hi. Thanks for taking my question and also the presentations. Just one quick question on follow-up on the Trip.com platform. Notice that you have accelerated growth over 70% in the fourth quarter. Wondering what is the outlook for 2025?

Simon Cheung
Simon Cheung
Managing Director at Goldman Sachs

And what are some of the initiatives that you are planning to do? I remember that you did mention now you have coverage of over, I think, 30 countries globally, for example. And then secondly, I think whether you have starting to see some response from some of your local competitor or even some of the global competitor like Golden Booking? Thanks for that. Thank you.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

Yes. So for the chip.com business is growing very rapidly. I think we focus on our internal strength, which includes providing one stop shopping platform, which makes travel very convenient for our travelers. Secondly, the users experience is excellent. And thirdly, we also focus to provide focus on providing excellent customer service to the global customers.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

And lastly, we also invest heavily in AI. So with all these concerted efforts, we have seen very promising growth going forward. We'll keep up with our efforts. Travel is a very robust industry. So ever since Trip.com was established, we have seen competition from different players, but our focus has always been viewed our internal strengths to provide the best service and best product for our customers and naturally our footprint will grow. Thank you.

Operator

Thank you. And one moment as we move on to our next question. Our next question is going to come from the line of Jack Yuan with Mizuho Securities. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

James Lee
James Lee
Assistant Vice President at Mizuho Financial Group, Inc.

Great. This is James Lee of Mizuho. A quick question on inbound travel in general. It sounds like you guys are off to a great start. Just curious what the current contribution of inbound travel to your business and what is sort of expected growth rate going forward?

James Lee
James Lee
Assistant Vice President at Mizuho Financial Group, Inc.

And maybe a big picture question over a longer term several years from now, how should we think about the level of contribution for inbound travel? Thank you so much.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

Yes. Inbound travel has great potential. Globally, if you look at the countries which attracts lots of inbound customers, it can inbound travel can contribute anywhere between 2% to even 10% of the GDP depending on different countries. For China, we just started the inbound travel. We have given more than 40 countries free visa.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

We also extended in transit visa from three days to ten days. So that makes the inland travel very convenient. Last year, we invited more than 2,000 global partners to Shanghai for a summit. And after that, we charted four planes to take them from Shanghai to Zhangjiajie, where the movie Avatar was filmed. And the feedback we got was very positive.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

All the people told us that they were very pleasantly surprised by what they have seen. It's very clean, very safe, people are very friendly, the history is very rich and the infrastructure is excellent. So we can see as long as we put concerted efforts to promote inbound travel, it can become trillion dollar contribution for this industry. And TripDakai is very well positioned because our inventory is the most comprehensive service is outstanding. So we would like to welcome more friends from all over the world to come in and visit us.

Jane Sun
Jane Sun
Chief Executive Officer, Director at Trip.com Group

So this is a very promising field for us to make our investment going forward in the next five to ten years.

James Lee
James Lee
Assistant Vice President at Mizuho Financial Group, Inc.

Great. Thank you so much.

Operator

Thank you. Thank you. And one moment for our next question. Our next question is going to come from the line of Jian Hao with Barclays. Your line is open. Please go ahead.

Jiong Shao
Jiong Shao
Analyst at Barclays Capital

Thank you very much for taking my question. I'm glad you talked about the enhanced capital return program for 2025 earlier. I was just wondering, could you firstly remind us when is the dividend payout date for that $200,000,000 And for your $400,000,000 buyback this year, any update so far? Have you bought any shares back? Could you also remind us sort of what's beyond this year if you have announced any other program beyond 2025? Thank you so much.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

The dividend registration date for the Hong Kong shareholder is on the March 2127, sorry. And The U. S. Shareholders, the registration date is on the April 1. And in the year 2024, we fully executed US300 million dollars share repurchase plan, which reduced approximately 1% of our outstanding shares.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

And for the year 2025, the Board of Director authorized a new capital return program and this include a share repurchase program of up to $400,000,000 and a cash dividend totally approximately US200 million dollars effectively doubling the size of our 2024 capital return program. And looking ahead, we will remain committed to increase our shareholder returns through sustainable business growth, while also actively seeking opportunities to further enhance the values through our capital return program. Thank you.

Jiong Shao
Jiong Shao
Analyst at Barclays Capital

Thank you very much.

Operator

Thank you. And I would like to hand the conference back over to Ms. Elkie for closing remarks.

Michelle Qi
Michelle Qi
Senior IR Director at Trip.com Group

Thank you. Thank you, everyone, for joining us today. You can find the transcript and webcast of today's call on investors.trif.com. We look forward to speaking with you on our first quarter twenty twenty five earnings call. Thank you, and have a good day.

Cindy Wang
Cindy Wang
CFO and EVP at Trip.com Group

Thank you.

Michelle Qi
Michelle Qi
Senior IR Director at Trip.com Group

Thank you.

Operator

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating and you may now disconnect.

Executives
    • Michelle Qi
      Michelle Qi
      Senior IR Director
    • James Liang
      James Liang
      Co Founder, Executive Chairman of the Board
    • Jane Sun
      Jane Sun
      Chief Executive Officer, Director
    • Cindy Wang
      Cindy Wang
      CFO and EVP
Analysts
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