JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ:JBLU) posted mixed traffic numbers for January 2019. In spite of traffic increasing on the back of strong demand for air travel, load factor (percentage of seats filled by passengers) declined as traffic growth was outweighed by capacity expansion.
Traffic (measured in revenue passenger miles or RPMs) improved 7.9% year over year to 4.09 billion. On a year-over-year basis, capacity (or available seat miles/ASMs) rose 9.9% to 5.09 billion.
However, load factor contracted 150 basis points (bps) to 80.4%, which seems to have dented investors’ sentiments. Consequently, the stock slipped 2% at the close of business on Feb 12.
The Long Island City, NY-based low-cost carrier registered a completion factor (system wide) of 96% in the month with 69.4% flights on schedule.
Q1 RASM View Intact
JetBlue maintains projection for operating revenue per available seat mile (RASM) in the first quarter of 2019. The metric is expected to either decline 2% or increase up to 1% in the first quarter.
Additionally, the carrier expects capacity to expand between 7.5% and 9.5%. Consolidated operating cost per available seat mile, excluding fuel, is expected to increase in the range of 1.5-3.5% in the first quarter. Meanwhile, first-quarter fuel cost, net of hedges, is projected to be $2.01 per gallon.
Zacks Rank & Other Stocks to Consider
JetBlue currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Investors interested in the Zacks Transportation Sector may consider Azul S.A. (NYSE:AZUL) , Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) and Air Lease Corporation (NYSE:AL) , each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Shares of Azul and Frontline have improved 64.7% and 17.1% in the past six months, respectively. Meanwhile, Air Lease outpaced the consensus mark for earnings in each of the trailing four quarters, the average being 22.8%.
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JetBlue Airways Corporation (JBLU): Free Stock Analysis Report
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