EasyJet to return to profitability

After suffering extended financial losses from the pandemic's start in early 2020, EasyJet anticipates a return to profitability this year.

Thanks to robust bookings in the lead-up to Christmas, the UK-based low-cost airline said that its performance in the fourth quarter of 2022 was "ahead of expectations," with group revenue increasing by 83% to £1.47 billion from the same time in 2021. The annual increase of passengers was 47%, from 11.9 million to 17.5 million.

Although easyJet nevertheless lost £133 million during the quarter, this was a 38% turnaround in the airline's shortfall of £213 million a year before, when the company was still struggling due to travel limitations imposed by Covid.

According to easyJet CEO Johan Lundgren, EasyJet has seen strong and sustained demand for travel over the first quarter, carrying almost 50 per cent more customers compared with last year. Moreover, an increase of £80 million compared to the same period last year was driven by the airline's outstanding booking performance and its improved revenue capabilities.

“We expect to see our winter loss reduce significantly over the first half compared to last year. This will set us firmly on the path to delivering a full-year profit, where we anticipate beating the current market expectation enabling us to create value for customers, investors and the economies we serve”, Lundgren added.

Increases in both capacity and load ratio helped push easyJet from 15.5 million seats in 2021 to 20.2 million seats during the quarter of October through December. A "later booking trend" has kept this number below what it was before the outbreak.

Ticket yield climbed by 21% and ancillary yield increased by 20%, contributing to a 36% increase in revenue per seat to £68.47 compared to the same period in 2021. Selling these extras has allowed EasyJet to increase its average revenue per ticket to £20.12.

In the peak summer quarter of July-September, the airline now anticipates reaching pre-Covid capacity, with an expected total of roughly 94 million tickets over the current fiscal year.

 

Source: businesstravelnewseurope.com