Carrier Finnair the result of the third quarter fell short of expectations.
The company’s comparable operating result in July–September was 71.5 million euros, while the analysis service Factsetin the consensus of three analysts expected a comparable operating profit of 92 million. A year ago, Finnair made a comparable operating profit of 94.3 million euros.
Finnair’s turnover in the third quarter was 818.8 million euros, while the consensus forecast compiled from the forecasts of four analysts expected a turnover of 856 million euros. In the comparison period, the turnover was 817.3 million euros.
Earnings per share were 0.28 euros, while analysts’ consensus forecast expected earnings per share of 0.30 euros. A year ago, in the third quarter, earnings per share were EUR 0.03.
Finnair explains the change March decision from combining shares, i.e. reducing the number of shares. After the comparison period, the airline also organized at the end of the subscription rights issue in 2023.
Also the airline’s previous results for the second quarter of the year, was disappointing compared to both the reference period and analysts’ expectations.
CEO: Cost management continues
Finnair transported 3.2 million passengers in July–September, 9.4 percent more than a year ago. The passenger occupancy rate was 79.5 percent.
Analysts’ consensus forecast expected a passenger occupancy rate of 79.8 percent for the third quarter. Expectations were for a slightly lower passenger utilization rate than a year ago, as a year ago it was 80.9 percent.
CEO of Finnair Fur Kuusisto explains in the review the decline in comparable operating profit with the decline in unit revenues as demand normalizes.
“Our unit costs without fuel costs decreased by 4.2 percent, which indicates successful cost management in a situation where our network’s traffic fees, including navigation fees, rose clearly more than our capacity,” Kuusisto commented in the review.
“Cost management and continuous improvement play an important role in securing our competitiveness in the future.”
Kuusisto started as the company’s CEO last spring.
According to the company, passenger revenues decreased compared to the comparison period in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. In North American traffic, passenger revenues increased.
New profit forecast for 2024
In connection with the results announcement, Finnair updated its forecast from 2024. The airline now estimates the comparable operating result to be 120–170 million euros in 2024.
In connection with the publication of its half-year review in July, Finnair said he was waitingthat the company’s comparable operating result will be 110–180 million euros in 2024.
The airline kept its revenue forecast unchanged on Tuesday. The company still estimates that the turnover in 2024 will be 3.0–3.2 billion euros.
Finnair has previously said that it plans to increase its total capacity by around 10 percent this year.
The airline has said that it believes that international air traffic will grow during 2024. The company expects growth to be mainly focused on Asia and Europe.
Source: www.arvopaperi.fi
