Back to top
See More Zacks Research for These Tickers
Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:
Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) - free report >>
American Airlines Group Inc. (AAL) - free report >>
We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, revised Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) - free report >>
American Airlines Group Inc. (AAL) - free report >>
Image: Bigstock
Southwest (LUV) to Cut Flights to Address Operational Issues
Southwest Airlines (LUV - Free Report) will reduce flight schedules starting September through the end of the year to ease operational disruptions that caused the company to cancel hundreds of flights during the summers and delayed several more.
Per a Reuters report, the airline will reduce an average of 27 flights per day from Sep 7 through Oct 6, and a further 162 flights per day from Oct 7 through Nov 5. The company plans to cut flights in November and December as well, except for the ones during holidays.
Southwest’s CEO, Gary Kelly, reportedly said, "We're confident these adjustments will create a more reliable travel experience."
Southwest Airlines Co. Price
Southwest Airlines Co. price | Southwest Airlines Co. Quote
Apart from technical glitches, the airline’s flight cancellations during the summers were driven by staff shortages as air-travel demand rose more than expected. To address the situation, the Dallas, TX-based carrier is "aggressively" hiring.
Despite improving, travel demand has recently suffered a setback amid rising coronavirus cases in the United States, induced by rapid spread of the Delta variant. Experiencing deceleration in bookings and increased cancellations, Southwest, carrying a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), reduced its forecast for the third quarter and said that unlike its previous expectation, it might not be profitable in the third quarter.
American Airlines (AAL - Free Report) , carrying a Zacks Rank #3, has been the latest carrier to warn about softness in bookings, as a result of which the company’s August revenues are falling below its expectations.
Last week, Spirit Airlines (SAVE - Free Report) , carrying a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell), said that it was witnessing uptick in cancellations and softer-than-expected booking trends for the third quarter due to increase in coronavirus cases. The company estimates an impact of $80-$100 million on revenues in the third quarter as a result of this weakness.
A Key Pick
A better-ranked stock in the airline space is SkyWest (SKYW - Free Report) , sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Shares of SkyWest have gained more than 34% in a year’s time.