A United Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 aircraft lands at San Francisco International Airport on March 13, 2019.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
United Airlines on Monday forecast a first-quarter loss as the Federal Aviation Administration this month grounded Boeing 737 Max 9 planes after a part blew through on an Alaska Airlines flight operating on that type of aircraft.
United expects to post an adjusted loss of between 35 cents and 85 cents per share in the first three months of the year, it said in a filing. The forecast is the first indication to investors of the financial damage caused by the FAA's grounding of the planes. It was published a day after the incident on Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 on January 5th.
United has 79 of these planes in its fleet, more than any other airline, followed by Alaska. United said Monday that it expects to keep the planes grounded through Jan. 26, although its forecast assumes it won't be able to fly the planes at all this month.
Both airlines have canceled hundreds of flights this month while planes remain grounded for inspections. The more common Boeing 737 Max 8, which is in the fleets of United, American and Southwest, is not affected by the grounding order.
United expects unit costs (excluding fuel) to increase by a mid-single-digit percentage point in the first quarter compared to last year, with three percent of that impact attributable to the Max grounding. Unchanged unit sales were forecast for the first three months of the year.
United's first-quarter warning comes after a relatively strong holiday season, although airlines faced several winter storms in the first weeks of January.
Shares of United rose more than 6% in after-hours trading.
In the final three months of 2023, United posted net income of $600 million, down nearly 29% year over year. Revenue was $13.63 billion, up nearly 10% from a year earlier and above analysts' estimates. Adjusted for one-time items, United's fourth-quarter profit fell to $2 from $2.46 per share a year earlier.
Here's what United reported in the fourth quarter compared to Wall Street's expectations, based on average estimates from LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:
- Adjusted earnings per share: $2.00 versus expected $1.69
- Total sales: $13.63 billion versus expected $13.54 billion
United met its full-year adjusted earnings target of $10 to $12 per share and reported full-year 2023 revenue of $10.05.
“Despite unpredictable headwinds, we achieved our ambitious EPS goal that few would have thought possible – and set new operating records for our customers,” United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said in an earnings release.
The airline reported strong travel demand late last year and solid bookings so far this year. For full-year 2024, United forecast adjusted earnings of between $9 and $11 per share, in line with analyst estimates.
United executives are holding an earnings conference call at 10:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday, where they will likely face questions about Boeing's compensation for the grounding. Alaska reports before the market opens on Thursday, and Boeing is expected to report results on January 31.
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