JetBlue Airways reported a bigger loss in the third quarter compared with last year, but the New York carrier said it is on the right track thanks to strong travel demand despite higher fuel prices as it seeks to calm investors after shares fell to a new low Monday.
JetBlue on Monday posted a net loss of $257 million for the three months ended Sept. 30, compared with a loss of $143 million a year earlier. The carrier's fuel bill rose 61% to $868 million.
"Resilient demand and strong yields drove revenue well ahead of our initial expectations, allowing us to recapture more of the increase in fuel costs than we initially expected," CEO Joanna Geraghty said in an earnings release. "That momentum has carried into the fourth quarter, and Fort Lauderdale continues to deliver exceptional results even as we significantly grow capacity."
JetBlue executives are set to hold an earnings call on Tuesday at 10 a.m. ET, where they will face questions from analysts about the company's long-term health. A group of the airline's senior creditors are reportedly working with restructuring adviser PJT Partners , the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
The carrier said it ended the quarter with $2.2 billion in liquidity and that its unencumbered asset base is now $7 billion, including $2.8 billion in aircraft and engines.
JetBlue last posted an annual profit in 2019. The airline is in the middle of a multiyear turnaround plan that includes cutting cuts and boosting revenue by investing in premium seats, like a new domestic first class section that recently went on sale.
Here is what JetBlue reported in the third quarter compared with Wall Street estimates compiled by LSEG:
Fuel costs have eaten into airline profits across the board. JetBlue said travel demand has remained strong despite higher fares , which are up more than 20% this year.
JetBlue has struggled not just with higher costs but with competition from larger rivals.
It sought to acquire now-defunct carrier Spirit Airlines, but that deal was upended by a federal judge that ruled it was anticompetitive. A judge also blocked a regional partnership between JetBlue and American Airlines , which the airlines argued would help them compete better against carriers in the congested Northeast U.S. JetBlue now has a partnership with United Airlines .
