TripAdvisor first-quarter profit more-than-halves as referrals drop

(Reuters) - TripAdvisor Inc's quarterly revenue fell 3 percent, missing analyst estimates, as a rise in hotel bookings on its websites hurt revenue from referrals to third-party sites.

The company, whose profit also fell more than expected, said on Wednesday that referral revenue fell to $189 million in the first quarter ended March 31 from $218 million a year earlier.

TripAdvisor's shares were down 5.8 percent at $59.46 in after-hours trading.

The company, whose websites include Tripadvisor.com and Oyster.com, said total costs and expenses rose 13.6 percent to $310 million in the quarter. (http://bit.ly/1SZdIhM)

TripAdvisor-branded display-based advertising and subscription revenue, which includes display ad and subscription-based revenue, rose 11 percent in the period.

The company's net income fell 57 percent to $27 million, or 18 cents per share, in the first quarter from $63 million, or 43 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, TripAdvisor earned 32 cents per share, far short of the average analysts' estimate of 46 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue fell to $352 million from $363 million, missing the average estimate of $370.5 million.

The company's results follow those of larger travel website operator Expedia Inc , which posted a surprise first-quarter profit last week, helped by acquisitions of Orbitz Worldwide Inc, Travelocity and HomeAway Inc.

(Reporting by Shashwat Awasthi in Bengaluru; Editing by Kirti Pandey)