JetBlue Airways (JBLU) Q2 Earnings & Sales Beat Estimates

Core Insights - JetBlue Airways (JBLU) reported second-quarter 2024 earnings of 8 cents per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 13 cents, but down from 45 cents in the same quarter last year [1] - Operating revenues reached $2.43 billion, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.39 billion, although this represents a 7% year-over-year decline [1] - Passenger revenues, which constitute 93.4% of total revenues, fell to $2.26 billion from $2.46 billion a year ago, impacted by air traffic control issues in the Northeast [1] Revenue and Traffic Performance - Revenue per available seat mile (RASM) decreased by 4.4% to 14.38 cents, while passenger revenue per available seat mile dropped 5.4% to 13.41 cents [2] - The average fare at JetBlue decreased by 0.5% to $218.27, and the yield per passenger mile also dipped by 4% [2] - Consolidated traffic, measured in revenue passenger miles, declined by 4.1%, and capacity, measured in available seat miles, fell by 2.7% [2] - The consolidated load factor decreased by 1.3 percentage points to 84%, indicating that the decline in traffic was greater than the reduction in capacity [2] Cost and Financial Position - Total operating costs remained flat at $2.4 billion, with salaries, wages, and benefits increasing by 1.6% year over year [3] - The average fuel price per gallon rose by 5.1% year over year to $2.87, contributing to a 2.6% increase in operating expenses per available seat mile (CASM) [3] - JetBlue ended the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $1.31 billion, up from $1.16 billion at the end of 2023, while total debt increased to $5.37 billion from $4.72 billion [3] Future Outlook - For Q3 2024, JetBlue anticipates a capacity decline in the range of 3-6% and expects CASM, excluding fuel and special items, to rise by 6-8% [4] - Total revenues are projected to decrease by 1.5-5.5%, with average fuel costs estimated between $2.82 and $2.97 per gallon [4] - For the full year 2024, capacity is expected to decline by 2.5-5%, and CASM, excluding fuel and special items, is predicted to increase by 6.5-8.5% [4]