Two top US airlines posted hefty fourth-quarter losses yesterday despite cash grants from the government, but the losses were not as deep as Wall Street had feared in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks. Fourth-quarter revenues slumped as travellers either flew less or paid less for their tickets. Still, the losses were less than what Wall Street expected and shares of both airlines rose.
"The numbers were relatively good considering what we were expecting," said Mr Michael Friedman, an analyst at American Express Financial Advisors. "But instead of being really, really lousy, they are only really lousy."
AMR, the Fort Worth, Texas-based parent of American Airlines and TWA, posted a record quarterly net loss of $798 million (€904 million), or $5.17 per share, as revenues dropped to $3.8 billion from $4.9 billion a year ago.
The figures included one-time items, charges for idling planes and government cash aid of $29 million from the $15 billion federal bail-out package enacted after the attacks.
Continental Airlines, the fifth-largest US carrier, posted a net loss of $149 million, or $2.58 per share, including government cash aid of $174 million and charges of $61 million for aircraft and other items.
Revenues at Houston-based Continental fell to $1.74 billion from $2.43 billion in the year-ago quarter. Excluding the grant and special items, Continental's loss was $220 million, or $3.81 per share. The First Call estimate was for a loss of $4.49 per share. - (Reuters)
