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Airline Stock Roundup: Q4 Earnings From ALK, LUV, JBLU & Others Post Loss
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In the past week,Southwest Airlines (LUV - Free Report) reported earnings for fourth-quarter 2021. This was LUV’s first profitable quarter after seven consecutive losses since the pandemic began in 2020. Alaska Air Group (ALK - Free Report) also delivered earnings for fourth-quarter 2021. Strong holiday travel demand and favorable pricing aided the December quarter’s results.
JetBlue Airways (JBLU - Free Report) , however, continued incurring a quarterly loss, its eighth successive setback. Omicron-induced turbulence induced Ryanair Holdings (RYAAY - Free Report) to incur a wider-than-expected loss in the third quarter of fiscal 2022 (ended Dec 31, 2021). An expansion-related update from Allegiant Travel Company (ALGT - Free Report) was also available in the past week.
1 Alaska Air Group’s fourth-quarter 2021 earnings (excluding 10 cents from non-recurring items) of 24 cents per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 17 cents. In the year-ago period, ALK incurred a loss of $2.55. Operating revenues of $1,899 million outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,841.8 million.
Alaska Air, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), expects first-quarter 2022 revenues to drop in the 14-17% range. CASM, excluding fuel and special items, is predicted to rise 15-18%. The unfavorable guidance includes a 7-point headwind due to the trimming of capacity. ALK estimates economic fuel cost per gallon in the band of $2.45-$2.50.
2. Southwest Airlines reported fourth-quarter 2021 earnings (excluding 3 cents from non-recurring items) of 14 cents per share, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 5 cents. In the year-ago period, LUV had incurred a loss of $1.29 per share. Strong holiday travel demand during November and December, as well as incremental revenues generated from the company's new co-brand credit card agreement, aided LUV’s fourth-quarter performance.
3. JetBlue incurred a fourth-quarter 2021 loss (excluding 4 cents from non-recurring items) of 36 cents per share, comparing favorably with the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 40 cents.
JetBlue expects first-quarter 2022capacity in the range of (1)-2% compared with the figure reported in the first quarter of 2019. CASM, excluding fuel and special items, is predicted to rise 13-15%. Total revenues are forecast to drop in the 11-16% range. Average fuel cost per gallon in the March quarter is estimated to be $2.59. Management expects the Omicron impact to be short term.
4. Ryanair Holdings incurred a loss of 48 cents per share in the third quarter of fiscal 2022, wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny. Results were hurt by Omicron-induced travel restrictions in December, which weakened close-in bookings and fares for Christmas and the New Year travel period. Quarterly revenues of $1,681.1 million fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,792.2 million but improved more than 400% from the year-ago period’s actuals with a significant improvement in traffic owing to strong bookings in October and November.
Ryanair’s net loss for the quarter came in at €96 million compared with the year-ago quarter’s loss of €321 million. Traffic soared more than 200% year over year to 31.1 million. Geographically, total revenues from Italy (comprised 24.5% of the top line) climbed more than 200% year over year, while the same from Spain (17.6%) jumped more than 300%. Revenues from the United Kingdom (12.7%) and Ireland (5.3%) soared nearly 300% and more than 400% year over year, respectively. Revenues from other European countries (39.9%) skyrocketed more than 300% year over year.
5. With air-travel demand improving in the United States as more people get vaccinated every day, Allegiant Travel intends to increase options for its passengers this spring with its latest network expansion to vacation destinations like Nashville, Savannah, Roanoke and San Diego. ALGT announced nine new non-stop routes from its bases in the United States, offering more options for leisure travelers.
This move comes when Allegiant Travel prepares for a busy spring season. Drew Wells, Allegiant's senior vice president of revenue and planning stated, “We're thrilled to kick off 2022 with a network expansion in twelve of our markets”.
Performance
The following table shows the price movement of the major airline players over the past week and during the last six months.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The table above shows that all airline stocks have traded in the green over the past week. Evidently, the NYSE ARCA Airline Index has increased 6.7% to $83.62. Over the past six months, the NYSE ARCA Airline Index has depreciated 9%.
What's Next in the Airline Space?
Fourth-quarter earnings reports from some more carriers are expected in the coming days.
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Airline Stock Roundup: Q4 Earnings From ALK, LUV, JBLU & Others Post Loss
In the past week,Southwest Airlines (LUV - Free Report) reported earnings for fourth-quarter 2021. This was LUV’s first profitable quarter after seven consecutive losses since the pandemic began in 2020. Alaska Air Group (ALK - Free Report) also delivered earnings for fourth-quarter 2021. Strong holiday travel demand and favorable pricing aided the December quarter’s results.
JetBlue Airways (JBLU - Free Report) , however, continued incurring a quarterly loss, its eighth successive setback. Omicron-induced turbulence induced Ryanair Holdings (RYAAY - Free Report) to incur a wider-than-expected loss in the third quarter of fiscal 2022 (ended Dec 31, 2021). An expansion-related update from Allegiant Travel Company (ALGT - Free Report) was also available in the past week.
Read the last Airline stock Roundup here.
Recap of the Latest Top Stories
1 Alaska Air Group’s fourth-quarter 2021 earnings (excluding 10 cents from non-recurring items) of 24 cents per share surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 17 cents. In the year-ago period, ALK incurred a loss of $2.55. Operating revenues of $1,899 million outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,841.8 million.
Alaska Air, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), expects first-quarter 2022 revenues to drop in the 14-17% range. CASM, excluding fuel and special items, is predicted to rise 15-18%. The unfavorable guidance includes a 7-point headwind due to the trimming of capacity. ALK estimates economic fuel cost per gallon in the band of $2.45-$2.50.
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
2. Southwest Airlines reported fourth-quarter 2021 earnings (excluding 3 cents from non-recurring items) of 14 cents per share, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 5 cents. In the year-ago period, LUV had incurred a loss of $1.29 per share. Strong holiday travel demand during November and December, as well as incremental revenues generated from the company's new co-brand credit card agreement, aided LUV’s fourth-quarter performance.
Operating revenues of $5,051 million outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5,029 million and also jumped more than 100% year over year. Due to Omicron-induced staffing issues and bad weather conditions, Southwest Airlines expects to incur a loss in the first quarter of 2022.
3. JetBlue incurred a fourth-quarter 2021 loss (excluding 4 cents from non-recurring items) of 36 cents per share, comparing favorably with the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 40 cents.
JetBlue expects first-quarter 2022capacity in the range of (1)-2% compared with the figure reported in the first quarter of 2019. CASM, excluding fuel and special items, is predicted to rise 13-15%. Total revenues are forecast to drop in the 11-16% range. Average fuel cost per gallon in the March quarter is estimated to be $2.59. Management expects the Omicron impact to be short term.
4. Ryanair Holdings incurred a loss of 48 cents per share in the third quarter of fiscal 2022, wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny. Results were hurt by Omicron-induced travel restrictions in December, which weakened close-in bookings and fares for Christmas and the New Year travel period. Quarterly revenues of $1,681.1 million fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,792.2 million but improved more than 400% from the year-ago period’s actuals with a significant improvement in traffic owing to strong bookings in October and November.
Ryanair’s net loss for the quarter came in at €96 million compared with the year-ago quarter’s loss of €321 million. Traffic soared more than 200% year over year to 31.1 million. Geographically, total revenues from Italy (comprised 24.5% of the top line) climbed more than 200% year over year, while the same from Spain (17.6%) jumped more than 300%. Revenues from the United Kingdom (12.7%) and Ireland (5.3%) soared nearly 300% and more than 400% year over year, respectively. Revenues from other European countries (39.9%) skyrocketed more than 300% year over year.
5. With air-travel demand improving in the United States as more people get vaccinated every day, Allegiant Travel intends to increase options for its passengers this spring with its latest network expansion to vacation destinations like Nashville, Savannah, Roanoke and San Diego. ALGT announced nine new non-stop routes from its bases in the United States, offering more options for leisure travelers.
This move comes when Allegiant Travel prepares for a busy spring season. Drew Wells, Allegiant's senior vice president of revenue and planning stated, “We're thrilled to kick off 2022 with a network expansion in twelve of our markets”.
Performance
The following table shows the price movement of the major airline players over the past week and during the last six months.
The table above shows that all airline stocks have traded in the green over the past week. Evidently, the NYSE ARCA Airline Index has increased 6.7% to $83.62. Over the past six months, the NYSE ARCA Airline Index has depreciated 9%.
What's Next in the Airline Space?
Fourth-quarter earnings reports from some more carriers are expected in the coming days.