Advertisement
Canada markets closed

  • S&P/TSX

    21,969.24
    +83.86 (+0.38%)
     

  • S&P 500

    5,099.96
    +51.54 (+1.02%)
     

  • DOW

    38,239.66
    +153.86 (+0.40%)
     

  • CAD/USD

    0.7316
    -0.0007 (-0.09%)
     

  • CRUDE OIL

    83.66
    +0.09 (+0.11%)
     

  • Bitcoin CAD

    86,268.47
    -1,926.05 (-2.18%)
     

  • CMC Crypto 200

    1,304.48
    -92.06 (-6.59%)
     

  • GOLD FUTURES

    2,349.60
    +7.10 (+0.30%)
     

  • RUSSELL 2000

    2,002.00
    +20.88 (+1.05%)
     

  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.6690
    -0.0370 (-0.79%)
     

  • NASDAQ

    15,927.90
    +316.14 (+2.03%)
     

  • VOLATILITY

    15.03
    -0.34 (-2.21%)
     

  • FTSE

    8,139.83
    +60.97 (+0.75%)
     

  • NIKKEI 225

    37,934.76
    +306.28 (+0.81%)
     

  • CAD/EUR

    0.6838
    +0.0017 (+0.25%)
     

Southwest Airlines (LUV) December Traffic & Load Factor Up

Zacks Equity Research
Updated

Southwest Airlines Company LUV has reported a substantial rise in traffic figures for December. Traffic (measured in Revenue Passenger Miles or RPMs) rose 2.6% to around 10.71 billion in the month. Meanwhile, Available Seat Miles (ASMs) inched up 1.8% to 12.87 billion. Load factor (percentage of seats filled by passengers) improved 70 basis points (bps) to 83.3% in the month as traffic growth outpaced capacity expansion.

On a year-to-date basis, Southwest Airlines witnessed a 3.4% rise in RPMs to 129.04 billion. Also, ASMs grew 3.6% to 153.81 billion. As a result, the load factor decreased 10 bps to 83.9%. Additionally, passenger count in 2017 rose 3.9% to 157.68 billion.

The company continues to expect fourth-quarter operating revenue per ASM (RASM) to increase 1-2% year over year. Unit costs (excluding fuel and oil expenses, special items plus profit-sharing expenses) in the fourth quarter are expected to be flat up to 1.5%.  

The stock has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter 2017 earnings being revised 1.2% upward in the last 60 days, evidently boosting a positive sentiment around the stock.

Results in detail will be available on Jan 25 when Southwest Airlines will report the quarterly earnings results.

Southwest Airlines Company Price

 

Southwest Airlines Company Price | Southwest Airlines Company Quote

ADVERTISEMENT


Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Southwest Airlines carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks in the airline space are Deutsche Lufthansa AG DLAKY, Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes S.A. GOL and SkyWest, Inc. SKYW, each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Shares of Deutsche Lufthansa, Gol Linhas and SkyWest have soared more than 100%, 200% and 45%, respectively, in 2017.

Looking for Stocks with Skyrocketing Upside?

Zacks has just released a Special Report on the booming investment opportunities of legal marijuana.

Ignited by new referendums and legislation, this industry is expected to blast from an already robust $6.7 billion to $20.2 billion in 2021. Early investors stand to make a killing, but you have to be ready to act and know just where to look.

See the pot trades we're targeting>>


Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
Southwest Airlines Company (LUV) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes S.A. (GOL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
SkyWest, Inc. (SKYW) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Deutsche Lufthansa AG (DLAKY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
 
Zacks Investment Research