American Airlines posted a third-quarter loss but raised its profit forecast for the 12 months as CEO Robert Isom said the corporate’s sales strategy shift earlier this 12 months is paying off.
The carrier said it expects to earn between 25 cents and 50 cents a share on an adjusted basis for the fourth quarter, above the 29 cents analysts polled by LSEG expected. For the complete 12 months, the airline expects to earn as much as an adjusted $1.60 a share, ahead of an earlier American forecast for not more than $1.30 a share.
American in May fired its chief business officer after a sales strategy that aimed to drive direct bookings backfired and quickly reverted much of its sales model.
“Now we have taken aggressive motion to reset our sales and distribution strategy and reengage the business travel community, which we’re confident will improve our revenue performance over time,” Isom said in an earnings release on Thursday. “Now we have heard great feedback from travel agencies and company customers as we work to rebuild the inspiration of our business strategy and make it easy for patrons to do business with American.”
Here is how American performed within the third quarter compared with Wall Street estimates compiled by LSEG:
- Earnings per share: 30 cents adjusted vs. 16 cents
- Revenue:Â $13.65 billion vs. $13.49 billion expected
American’s revenue rose 1.2% to a record $13.65 billion for the three months ended Sept. 30, but posted a net lack of $149 million, narrower than the $545 million loss it reported a 12 months earlier. Unit revenue fell 2% within the quarter.
For the fourth quarter, American said its unit revenue will likely drop between 1% to three% compared with last 12 months, with capability up as much as 3% 12 months over 12 months.
