Thursday, Copa Holdings, S.A. (CPA), the parent company of Copa Airlines and Aero Republica, reported an increase in fourth quarter earnings, as revenues climbed 21.6% year-on-year, reflecting increase in both traffic and capacity.
Net income for the quarter rose to US$51.9 million or US$1.20 per share from US$35.5 million or US$0.82 per share in the corresponding period last year.
Excluding US$12.2 million of non-cash charge associated with mark-to-market of fuel hedge contracts, earnings for the quarter were $64.1 million or $1.48 per share.
On average, nine analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn $1.12 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.
Total revenues rose 21.6% to US$346.1 million from the same period last year, and exceeded four Street analysts' estimate of $339.80 million.
Yield per passenger mile advanced 6.0% to 18.5 cents and operating revenue per available seat mile grew by 5.8% to 14.6 cents. Consolidated passenger traffic for the quarter grew 15.5% while capacity increased 15.0%. Consequently, consolidated load factor for the quarter increased 0.3 percentage points to 74.1%.
Operating income surged 95.5% to US$84.0 million, from US$43.0 million recorded in the corresponding period last year. Operating margin during the quarter increased 9.2 percentage points to 24.3% from 15.1% in the year-ago quarter mainly due higher unit revenues.
For the twelve-month period, net income declined to US$152.2 million or US$3.50 per share from US$161.8 million or US$3.72 per share last year. Excluding special items, which include a US$20.2 million non-cash charge associated with the mark-to-market of fuel hedge contracts, Copa Holdings would have reported an adjusted net income of US$172.4 million, or US$3.97 per share. Revenues for the year were US$1.288 billion, up 25.5% from the previous year.
CPA is currently trading up $1.81 or 6.14% at $31.30.
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