Southwest planes sit on the runway at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on February 20, 2019 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Joe Raedle | fake pictures
Southwest Airlines said Thursday it lost $ 915 million in the second quarter compared to $ 741 million in net income the previous year, and warned that travel demand will likely remain depressed until there is a vaccine or treatment for the coronavirus.
The airline said demand has softened in recent weeks, echoing comments from other airline executives who have said an increase in Covid-19 cases along with travel restrictions in states like New York have affected ticket sales that began to pick up in late spring.
Southwest estimated that its capacity for the third quarter will decrease between 20% and 30% from last year.
Revenue fell nearly 83% to just over $ 1 billion from $ 5.9 billion last year, although sales in the quarter were higher than analyst estimates.
“We were encouraged by improvements in leisure passenger traffic trends in May and June compared to March and April; however, trends in improved revenue and bookings have recently stagnated in July with increasing COVID-19 cases, “CEO Gary Kelly said in A Profit Release. “We expect demand for air travel to remain depressed until a vaccine or therapeutic products are available to combat the infection and spread of COVID-19.”
Kelly said Southwest would “aggressively and frequently” adjust its flight schedule in “this volatile demand environment.”
Southwest posted a loss per share of $ 2.67 on an adjusted basis, more or less in line with analyst forecasts.
The airline’s shares rose 1.3% in premarket trading.
.
