What is an online travel agency (OTA) and how does it make money?

An OTA (like Despegar, Booking.com, or Expedia) aggregates travel inventory from airlines, hotels, and other suppliers and sells it to consumers through a single platform — earning commission or margin on each transaction. OTAs make money from: (1) commission-based bookings where they earn a percentage of the sale price; (2) merchant model where they buy inventory at wholesale and sell at retail margin; (3) advertising revenue from suppliers paying for prominence in search results.

How does Latin American economic volatility affect travel companies?

Latin American economies experience more frequent and severe recessions, currency devaluations, and political instability than developed markets. Currency devaluations make international travel more expensive for local consumers (international flights and hotels priced in USD become unaffordable when the local currency weakens). Domestic Latin American travel (within the same country or region) is somewhat less exposed to this, which is why Despegar's regional package business provides more local-currency revenue stability than pure international bookings.

What payment methods does Despegar use to serve Latin American consumers?

Latin American consumers have significantly different payment behaviors than North American or European travelers — credit card penetration is lower, installment plan purchases (paying for purchases in multiple monthly installments) are extremely common, and regional payment methods like Brazil's Pix (instant payment system), Bolivia's QR codes, and various local credit and debit networks are essential. Despegar's regional specialization in these payment methods is a key advantage versus global OTAs that may not support local payment infrastructure as well.

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CPA

Copa Holdings, S.A. · Industrials - Latin American Airline

$151.04

+19.28% this month

VERSUS

⟷

COMPARE

DESP

Despegar.com, Corp. · Consumer Discretionary - Online Travel Agency

N/A

N/A this month

Scoreboard verdict

Across AI score, momentum, valuation, upside, operating margin

CPA

0

DESP

0

MIXED SETUP

Comparison scoreboard

MIXED SETUP

AI Score

CPA 47.7

DESP N/A

1Y Return

CPA +53.14%

DESP N/A

Fwd P/E

CPA 7.72

DESP N/A

Target Up.

CPA +11.36%

DESP N/A

Op. Margin

CPA N/A

DESP N/A

Metrics last refreshed: 6/20/2026

Quick take

CPA vs DESP Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside

CPA (Copa Holdings) is Latin America's best-run airline with a Panama hub connecting the Americas, while DESP (Despegar.com) is Latin America's leading online travel agency enabling regional consumers to book flights, hotels, and vacation packages. Copa offers airline margin exposure; Despegar offers OTA platform exposure to Latin American travel growth.

CPA vs DESP is Latin American airline operations (Copa's hub model) versus Latin American travel technology marketplace (Despegar's OTA) — both exposed to Latin American travel demand growth but through fundamentally different business models and risk profiles.

Live analysis · updated 6/20/2026

CPA and DESP are closely matched — they split the tracked metrics evenly.

Normalized 1Y performance

CPA

DESP

Not enough data to chart yet.

Recent returns

CPA

DESP

Analyst price targets & sentiment

CPA · 15 analysts

STRONG BUYHOLDSTRONG SELL

Strong Buy (1.5/5.0)

Price target range

analyst low$131.00
analyst high$195.00
analyst mean$168.20
current price$151.04

+11.4% upside to analyst mean

DESP

Price target data unavailable

N/A

Who should consider this stock?

CPA may suit investors who:

→Want the best-run Latin American airline with structural hub positioning advantages at Panama's crossroads location connecting the Americas
→Value Copa's historically superior operating margins and load factors versus less disciplined Latin American carrier peers
→Accept airline sector cyclicality (fuel costs, economic sensitivity) in exchange for Copa's geographic and operational differentiation

DESP may suit investors who:

→Want Latin American online travel marketplace exposure as the region's largest OTA serving consumers booking flights, hotels, and vacation packages
→Value Despegar's regional specialization (local payment methods, regional carrier relationships) as an advantage versus global OTAs in Latin American markets
→See Latin American travel market digitization as a long-term secular growth opportunity with Despegar as the incumbent market leader

Performance & AI score

Metric	CPA	DESP
AI score	47.7	N/A
AI rank	#593	N/A
Latest close	$151.04	N/A
1M return	+19.28%	N/A
6M return	+30.68%	N/A
1Y return	+53.14%	N/A

$10,000 invested — hypothetical growth (dividends reinvested)

How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?

Period	CPA	DESP
1Y ago	$16.13K (+61.3%) started 2025-06-18	N/A
5Y ago	$28.56K (+185.6%) started 2021-06-18	N/A
10Y ago	$53.61K (+436.1%) started 2016-06-20	N/A

Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.

Valuation & upside potential

Metric	CPA	DESP
Market cap	$6.16B	N/A
Trailing P/E	8.80	N/A
Forward P/E	7.72	N/A
Price/Sales	1.63	2.11
EV/Revenue	1.84	N/A
Analyst target	$168.20	N/A
Target upside	+11.36%	N/A

Growth, profitability & risk

Metric	CPA	DESP
Revenue growth	17.00%	N/A
Earnings growth	20.50%	N/A
EPS growth	+20.50%	N/A
FCF margin	-4.73%	N/A
Operating margin	N/A	N/A
Profit margin	18.76%	N/A
ROIC proxy	26.42%	N/A
Return on equity	26.42%	N/A
Dividend yield	4.77%	N/A
Beta	0.99	0.16
Debt/equity	84.12	N/A
Current ratio	1.16	N/A
Quick ratio	0.98	N/A

Drawdown & downside risk

Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.

1Y risk snapshot

CPA max drawdown29.22%

DESP max drawdownN/A

CPA max wkly drop13.27%

DESP max wkly dropN/A

5Y risk snapshot

CPA max drawdown42.52%

DESP max drawdownN/A

CPA max wkly drop22.41%

DESP max wkly dropN/A

10Y risk snapshot

CPA max drawdown78.94%

DESP max drawdownN/A

CPA max wkly drop56.72%

DESP max wkly dropN/A

Performance metrics by period

Period	Metric	CPA	DESP
1Y	Growth	+53.14%	N/A
	CAGR	+53.19%	N/A
	Sharpe ratio	1.14	N/A
	Max drawdown	29.22%	N/A
	Max daily drop	10.54%	N/A
	Max wkly drop	13.27%	N/A
5Y	Growth	+133.11%	N/A
	CAGR	+18.45%	N/A
	Sharpe ratio	0.52	N/A
	Max drawdown	42.52%	N/A
	Max daily drop	12.33%	N/A
	Max wkly drop	22.41%	N/A
10Y	Growth	+282.78%	N/A
	CAGR	+14.38%	N/A
	Sharpe ratio	0.42	N/A
	Max drawdown	78.94%	N/A
	Max daily drop	29.05%	N/A
	Max wkly drop	56.72%	N/A

Business comparison

Category	CPA	DESP
Company	Copa Holdings, S.A.	Despegar.com, Corp.
Sector	Industrials - Latin American Airline	Consumer Discretionary - Online Travel Agency
Industry	N/A	N/A
Core business	Copa Holdings operates Copa Airlines, a Panama City-based carrier that serves as the preeminent hub connecting North America, South America, and the Caribbean through Panama's Tocumen International Airport — offering exceptional connectivity across the Americas from a geographically central hub.	Despegar.com is Latin America's leading online travel agency (OTA), offering flight bookings, hotel reservations, vacation packages, and travel experiences across Latin America and the Caribbean — serving consumers in 20+ Latin American countries with a regionally focused platform.
Investor focus	Investors track Copa's passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM), load factor, operating costs (particularly fuel), capacity growth, and Panama's regulatory environment for the airline's continued hub expansion.	Investors track Despegar's gross bookings value, revenue take rate, transaction count, vacation packages mix (higher margin than point bookings), and recovery trajectory following COVID's severe impact on Latin American travel.

CPA strengths

→Tocumen Airport's geographic position at the center of the Americas makes it an ideal hub for connecting flights between North and South America with superior schedule connectivity
→Copa is consistently among the most profitable and best-run airlines in the Americas — it has delivered strong operating margins relative to Latin American peers
→High load factors and disciplined capacity management have historically protected Copa's margins even during periods of fuel cost pressure

DESP strengths

→Market-leading OTA in Latin America with brand recognition and payment integration adapted to regional markets where local payment methods and installment plans are essential
→Vacation packages (bundled flight + hotel) provide higher margins than individual booking components and create more complex transactions that favor established regional OTAs over global platforms
→Latin American travel market is underpenetrated relative to developed market online booking penetration, providing long-term secular growth runway

Risks to watch — CPA

→Oil price increases significantly impact Copa's fuel costs, which are a large portion of total operating expenses and the primary profitability risk
→Economic downturns in Latin American economies reduce corporate and leisure travel demand across Copa's route network
→New entrants and low-cost carrier expansion in Copa's key markets could pressure yields on Copa's most profitable routes

Risks to watch — DESP

→Competition from global OTAs (Booking.com, Expedia) and Airbnb in Latin American markets pressures Despegar's ability to maintain market share and margin
→Latin American currency volatility affects both booking volumes and the USD-translated revenue reported to U.S. investors
→Despegar has significantly improved profitability but still generates lower margins than global OTA leaders, reflecting the higher marketing investment required to serve fragmented Latin American markets

Frequently asked questions

Panama City sits roughly at the geographic center of the Americas — equidistant between the northernmost and southernmost points of the Western Hemisphere. Tocumen International Airport's location means Copa can offer flight connections from virtually any city in North America to any city in South America with similar connection times. This geographic centrality makes Tocumen the natural Americas hub hub, similar to how Amsterdam Schiphol serves as a European-Atlantic crossroads for KLM.

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+1.1%HOLD

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