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JetBlue (JBLU) Q4 Earnings Miss Estimates, Decrease Y/Y
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Shares of low-cost carrier, JetBlue Airways Corporation (JBLU - Free Report) have declined 7% ever since it reported lower-than-expected earnings per share in the fourth quarter of 2017, last week.
The company’s earnings of earnings per share (excluding $1.76 from non-recurring items) of 32 cents, fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 34 cents. The bottom line decreased 36% on a year-over-year basis due to high costs.
Operating revenues of $1,756 million matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Revenues increased 7% from the year ago figure. Passenger revenues, which accounted for bulk of the top line (89.1%), improved 5.9% in the final quarter of 2017. Other revenues increased 16.9% as well.
Operating Statistics
Capacity, measured in available seat miles, expanded 5.1% year over year. Traffic, measured in revenue passenger miles, grew 3.1% in the reported quarter. Load factor (percentage of seats filled by passengers) declined 160 basis points (bps) year over year to 83.1% as traffic growth was outpaced by capacity expansion.
Yield per passenger mile improved 2.8% year over year to 13.57 cents. Passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM: a key measure of unit revenue) inched up 0.8% to 11.28 cents and operating revenue per available seat mile (RASM) increased 1.8% to 12.66 cents.
Expenses
In the fourth quarter, total operating expenses (on a reported basis) increased 16.5% year over year. Average fuel cost per gallon (including fuel taxes) escalated 21.6% to $1.99. Moreover, JetBlue’s operating cost per available seat mile (CASM) was up 10.8% to 11.29 cents in the reported quarter. Excluding fuel, the metric climbed 8.1% to 8.63 cents backed by rise in labor costs.
JetBlue Airways Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
JetBlue, carrying a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), exited the year with cash and cash equivalents of $303 million compared with $433 million at the end of 2016. Total debt, at the end of the quarter was $1,199 million than $1,384 million at the end of 2016. Meanwhile, this low-cost carrier is constantly working toward reducing its debt levels. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Outlook
For the first quarter of 2018, the carrier expects capacity to increase between 3.5% and 5.5%. The metric is anticipated to increase in the range of 6.5% to 8.5% for 2018.
Consolidated operating cost per available seat mile, excluding fuel, is expected to grow in the band of 2% to 4% in the first quarter. For the current year, the metric is projected in the range of -1% to +1% (year over year).
Operating revenue per available seat mile (RASM) is anticipated to grow in the 2.5% to 5.5% band in first-quarter 2018.
Upcoming Releases
Investors interested in the Zacks Transportation sector are keenly awaiting fourth-quarter earnings reports from key players like United Parcel Service (UPS - Free Report) , Allegiant Travel Company (ALGT - Free Report) and Spirit Airlines (SAVE - Free Report) in the coming days. While UPS is scheduled to report on Feb 1, Allegiant and Spirit Airlines are scheduled to report on Jan 31 and Feb 6, respectively.
Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2018
In addition to the stocks discussed above, would you like to know about our 10 finest buy-and-hold tickers for the entirety of 2018?
Last year's 2017 Zacks Top 10 Stocks portfolio produced double-digit winners, including FMC Corp. and VMware which racked up stellar gains of +67.9% and +61%. Now a brand-new portfolio has been handpicked from over 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank. Don’t miss your chance to get in on these long-term buys.
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JetBlue (JBLU) Q4 Earnings Miss Estimates, Decrease Y/Y
Shares of low-cost carrier, JetBlue Airways Corporation (JBLU - Free Report) have declined 7% ever since it reported lower-than-expected earnings per share in the fourth quarter of 2017, last week.
The company’s earnings of earnings per share (excluding $1.76 from non-recurring items) of 32 cents, fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 34 cents. The bottom line decreased 36% on a year-over-year basis due to high costs.
Operating revenues of $1,756 million matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Revenues increased 7% from the year ago figure. Passenger revenues, which accounted for bulk of the top line (89.1%), improved 5.9% in the final quarter of 2017. Other revenues increased 16.9% as well.
Operating Statistics
Capacity, measured in available seat miles, expanded 5.1% year over year. Traffic, measured in revenue passenger miles, grew 3.1% in the reported quarter. Load factor (percentage of seats filled by passengers) declined 160 basis points (bps) year over year to 83.1% as traffic growth was outpaced by capacity expansion.
Yield per passenger mile improved 2.8% year over year to 13.57 cents. Passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM: a key measure of unit revenue) inched up 0.8% to 11.28 cents and operating revenue per available seat mile (RASM) increased 1.8% to 12.66 cents.
Expenses
In the fourth quarter, total operating expenses (on a reported basis) increased 16.5% year over year. Average fuel cost per gallon (including fuel taxes) escalated 21.6% to $1.99. Moreover, JetBlue’s operating cost per available seat mile (CASM) was up 10.8% to 11.29 cents in the reported quarter. Excluding fuel, the metric climbed 8.1% to 8.63 cents backed by rise in labor costs.
JetBlue Airways Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
JetBlue Airways Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | JetBlue Airways Corporation Quote
Balance Sheet
JetBlue, carrying a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), exited the year with cash and cash equivalents of $303 million compared with $433 million at the end of 2016. Total debt, at the end of the quarter was $1,199 million than $1,384 million at the end of 2016. Meanwhile, this low-cost carrier is constantly working toward reducing its debt levels. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Outlook
For the first quarter of 2018, the carrier expects capacity to increase between 3.5% and 5.5%. The metric is anticipated to increase in the range of 6.5% to 8.5% for 2018.
Consolidated operating cost per available seat mile, excluding fuel, is expected to grow in the band of 2% to 4% in the first quarter. For the current year, the metric is projected in the range of -1% to +1% (year over year).
Operating revenue per available seat mile (RASM) is anticipated to grow in the 2.5% to 5.5% band in first-quarter 2018.
Upcoming Releases
Investors interested in the Zacks Transportation sector are keenly awaiting fourth-quarter earnings reports from key players like United Parcel Service (UPS - Free Report) , Allegiant Travel Company (ALGT - Free Report) and Spirit Airlines (SAVE - Free Report) in the coming days. While UPS is scheduled to report on Feb 1, Allegiant and Spirit Airlines are scheduled to report on Jan 31 and Feb 6, respectively.
Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2018
In addition to the stocks discussed above, would you like to know about our 10 finest buy-and-hold tickers for the entirety of 2018?
Last year's 2017 Zacks Top 10 Stocks portfolio produced double-digit winners, including FMC Corp. and VMware which racked up stellar gains of +67.9% and +61%. Now a brand-new portfolio has been handpicked from over 4,000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank. Don’t miss your chance to get in on these long-term buys.
Access Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2018 today >>