Is TRIP a good stock to buy? We came across a bullish thesis on Tripadvisor, Inc. on PPinvest’s Substack. In this article, we will summarize the bulls’ thesis on TRIP. Tripadvisor, Inc.’s share was trading at $12.39 as of June 23rd. TRIP’s trailing and forward P/E were 112.64 and 9.53 respectively according to Yahoo Finance.
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Tripadvisor, Inc., an online travel company, engages in the provision of travel guidance products and services worldwide. TRIP is undergoing a significant transformation from its legacy hotel review business into a travel experiences platform centered around Viator, its fast-growing tours and activities marketplace. While the company continues to face pressure in its traditional advertising business due to competition from Google, Viator has emerged as the primary growth engine and now contributes nearly half of total revenue.
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The investment case strengthened materially on June 15, 2026, when Tripadvisor announced the sale of its restaurant reservation platform, TheFork, to American Express for $700 million in cash. The transaction provides substantial liquidity, simplifies the business, and allows management to focus resources on expanding Viator, triggering a double-digit share price increase following the announcement.
The company’s valuation appears disconnected from its underlying assets. Prior to the deal announcement, Tripadvisor’s market capitalization was approximately $1.44 billion, yet after accounting for existing cash, proceeds from the TheFork sale, and remaining debt, the company would hold roughly $637 million of net liquidity. This implies the market is valuing the remaining operating businesses, including Viator, at only around $800 million despite Viator generating nearly $1 billion in annual revenue and possessing significantly higher standalone valuation potential.
The bullish thesis is further supported by an unusually high short interest, with roughly 37% of shares sold short and a days-to-cover ratio exceeding two weeks. Many short sellers had expected balance sheet stress and shareholder dilution from maturing convertible debt, but management eliminated that risk by repaying the debt in cash and further strengthened the balance sheet through the TheFork transaction.
With activist investor involvement, potential share repurchases, and a key catalyst in the upcoming August 2026 earnings report, Tripadvisor presents a highly asymmetric opportunity where a rerating of Viator and a potential short squeeze could drive substantial upside from current levels.
Previously, we covered a bullish thesis on Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) by Jimmy Investor in April 2025, which highlighted its leadership in online travel, AI-driven personalization, and strong cash generation. BKNG’s stock price has depreciated by approximately 12.71% (adjusted for stock split) since our coverage. PPinvest shares a similar view but emphasizes on Tripadvisor’s Viator-driven transformation, TheFork sale, improved balance sheet, and potential upside from share repurchases.
Tripadvisor, Inc. is not on our list of the 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 35 hedge fund portfolios held TRIP at the end of the first quarter which was 43 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the risk and potential of TRIP as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than TRIP and that has 10,000% upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
Disclosure: None.
