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Airline Stock Roundup: JBLU Posts Dull Q3 Results, DAL Updates on Israel Flights
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Last week, low-cost carrier JetBlue Airways (JBLU - Free Report) reported disastrous third-quarter 2023 results. Adverse weather and air traffic control issues hurt operations in the third quarter. Additionally, leisure travel bookings in the September quarter were lower than expected.
Meanwhile, an antitrust trial is debating on JetBlue’s planned acquisition of Spirit Airlines (SAVE - Free Report) . Due to the Israel-Hamas conflict, Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) decided to cancel flights from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (“JFK”) and Tel Aviv through Nov 21.
1. JetBlue Airways’ third-quarter 2023 loss (excluding 7 cents from non-recurring items) of 39 cents per share was wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 27 cents. In the year-ago quarter, JBLU had reported earnings of 21 cents. Weather-related constraints and high fuel prices hurt the results.
Operating revenues of $2,353 million missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2,379 million. Moreover, the top line decreased 8.16% year over year. Passenger revenues, accounting for the bulk of the top line (93.5%), declined to $2,201 million from $2,415 million a year ago. Management expects the fourth-quarter 2023 loss per share to be 35-55 cents.
2. Due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, DAL’s management decided to cancel all flights between JFK and Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport through Nov 21. The sale of these flight tickets was suspended from Nov 1. DAL continues to have a travel waiver in place for customers who booked tickets before Oct 11, 2023, to/from TLV. Under this service, they can rebook their travel on available flights through Sep 6, 2024.
3. According to a Reuters report, a lawyer from the U.S. Department of Justice urged a federal judge to block JetBlue’s intended $3.8-billion acquisition of Spirit Airlines in an effort to preserve competition among the lowest-cost carriers. This is to ensure that air travel remains affordable. The Justice Department believes that if the deal materializes, it would lead to fewer flights and seats, and higher prices. Meanwhile, JetBlue has called the deal pro-consumer.
4. SkyWest’s (SKYW - Free Report) third-quarter 2023 earnings per share of 55 cents outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 40 cents but declined 42.7% year over year. Revenues of $766.2 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $762.6 million but slipped 2.9% year over year. The outperformance pleased investors, leading to a share price appreciation post the earnings release.
In a bid to modernize its fleet, SkyWest inked a deal with United Airlines (UAL - Free Report) for 19 new E175 jets under contract. Deliveries of the planes are scheduled to begin from late 2024 and continue till 2026
Price Performance
The following table shows the price movement of the major airline players over the past week and during the past six months.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The table above shows that most airline stocks traded in the red over the past week. As a result, the NYSE ARCA Airline Index declined 3% over the period to $46.66.. Over past six months, the sector tracker declined 21.5%.
What's Next in the Airline Space?
Gol Linhas is scheduled to report its third-quarter earnings numbers on Nov 6. While passenger revenues are likely to have been impressive, high costs are likely to have dented the bottom-line performance in the to-be-reported quarter.
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Airline Stock Roundup: JBLU Posts Dull Q3 Results, DAL Updates on Israel Flights
Last week, low-cost carrier JetBlue Airways (JBLU - Free Report) reported disastrous third-quarter 2023 results. Adverse weather and air traffic control issues hurt operations in the third quarter. Additionally, leisure travel bookings in the September quarter were lower than expected.
Meanwhile, an antitrust trial is debating on JetBlue’s planned acquisition of Spirit Airlines (SAVE - Free Report) . Due to the Israel-Hamas conflict, Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) decided to cancel flights from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (“JFK”) and Tel Aviv through Nov 21.
More earnings-related updates are available in the previous week’s write-up.
Recap of Last Week’s Most Important Stories
1. JetBlue Airways’ third-quarter 2023 loss (excluding 7 cents from non-recurring items) of 39 cents per share was wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 27 cents. In the year-ago quarter, JBLU had reported earnings of 21 cents. Weather-related constraints and high fuel prices hurt the results.
Operating revenues of $2,353 million missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2,379 million. Moreover, the top line decreased 8.16% year over year. Passenger revenues, accounting for the bulk of the top line (93.5%), declined to $2,201 million from $2,415 million a year ago. Management expects the fourth-quarter 2023 loss per share to be 35-55 cents.
JBLU currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
2. Due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, DAL’s management decided to cancel all flights between JFK and Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport through Nov 21. The sale of these flight tickets was suspended from Nov 1. DAL continues to have a travel waiver in place for customers who booked tickets before Oct 11, 2023, to/from TLV. Under this service, they can rebook their travel on available flights through Sep 6, 2024.
3. According to a Reuters report, a lawyer from the U.S. Department of Justice urged a federal judge to block JetBlue’s intended $3.8-billion acquisition of Spirit Airlines in an effort to preserve competition among the lowest-cost carriers. This is to ensure that air travel remains affordable. The Justice Department believes that if the deal materializes, it would lead to fewer flights and seats, and higher prices. Meanwhile, JetBlue has called the deal pro-consumer.
4. SkyWest’s (SKYW - Free Report) third-quarter 2023 earnings per share of 55 cents outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 40 cents but declined 42.7% year over year. Revenues of $766.2 million beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $762.6 million but slipped 2.9% year over year. The outperformance pleased investors, leading to a share price appreciation post the earnings release.
In a bid to modernize its fleet, SkyWest inked a deal with United Airlines (UAL - Free Report) for 19 new E175 jets under contract. Deliveries of the planes are scheduled to begin from late 2024 and continue till 2026
Price Performance
The following table shows the price movement of the major airline players over the past week and during the past six months.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The table above shows that most airline stocks traded in the red over the past week. As a result, the NYSE ARCA Airline Index declined 3% over the period to $46.66.. Over past six months, the sector tracker declined 21.5%.
What's Next in the Airline Space?
Gol Linhas is scheduled to report its third-quarter earnings numbers on Nov 6. While passenger revenues are likely to have been impressive, high costs are likely to have dented the bottom-line performance in the to-be-reported quarter.