(BFM Bourse) – The German company has unveiled a net profit below expectations for the first quarter and finds itself sanctioned on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
Optimism has returned since the start of the year for airlines and tourism in general. The jump in revenues of hotel group Accor and airport operator Aéroports de Paris, published last week, confirmed a return to better shape in the sector. And as Stifel recently pointed out, the latest indicators have shown that both travel demand and the pricing environment remain buoyant.
In this context, the slightest disappointment spills over. Evidenced by the results of Lufhtansa, the first of the “legacy”, or European airlines excluding low-cost, to publish its accounts.
Over the first three months of the year, the German airline group saw its revenues increase by 40% to 7 billion euros, while adjusted operating profit showed a loss of 273 million euros against a loss of 577 million euros a year earlier. The net loss amounted to 467 million euros.
Almost all of the account lines turned out to be better than expected, except, and this is where the problem lies, the net result. “This loss is stronger than expected,” notes Stephen Furlong, analyst at Davy. According to a consensus provided by the company, analysts expected a net loss of “only” 301 million euros.
On the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Lufthansa lost 2.3% at the end of the morning after having fallen by more than 7% at the start of the session. This weighs down the other airlines, Air France-KLM giving up more than 4% in Paris while IAG, the parent company of British Airways and Iberia, gives up 2% in London.
“They are all down because of Lufthansa, but the market may overreact, especially since the German company’s forecasts are encouraging,” notes Stephen Furlong.
For the second quarter, the German group is counting on capacities (the number of lines put in place) representing 83% of that of the same period of 2019 as well as on an adjusted operating profit higher than that of this same year, a figure which is stood at 754 million euros. It also confirmed that it is targeting for the whole of 2023 capacities of between 85% and 90% of those of 2019, an adjusted operating profit significantly higher than that of 2022 and a significantly positive cash generation.
To see if Air France-KLM, which will publish its quarterly results on Friday morning, will appeal more to the market. According to a consensus compiled by the company, analysts on average expect revenue of 6.3 billion euros, an operating loss of 282 million euros and a net loss of 340 million.
Julien Marion – ©2023 BFM Bourse
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