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United Airlines lost $646 million in the fourth quarter and said Wednesday that the current spike in COVID-19 cases will hurt its results in the March quarter.
The airline said it expects its first-quarter revenue will be down 20% to 25% from the same period in 2019. Costs other than fuel will rise about 15% on a per-seat basis.
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The omicron variant of the virus is showing up in United’s plans for 2022. The airline had once hoped to operate 5% more flights than it did in 2019, but now expects to fly less this year than it did before the pandemic.
United said omicron is hurting near-term bookings, but the outlook is better for travel in spring and summer. The Chicago-based airline said it is on track to hit long-term financial targets for 2023 and 2026.
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Company officials are scheduled to discuss the results with analysts on Thursday.
United’s fourth-quarter loss compared with a loss of $1.9 billion a year ago and profit of $641 million in the fourth quarter of 2019.
Excluding special items, the company said its adjusted loss was $1.60 per share. Analysts expected a wider loss of $2.09 per share, according to a FactSet survey.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UAL | UNITED AIRLINES HOLDINGS INC. | 44.40 | -1.21 | -2.65% |
Revenue was $8.19 billion, 25% below the same period in 2019 but better than the $7.96 billion forecast by analysts. Passengers flew 28% fewer miles than they did two years earlier.
United lost $1.96 billion for all of 2021, even after getting $4 billion in federal pandemic relief to help cover labor costs.
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The airline finished the year with 84,100 employees, down from 95,900 at the end of 2019.
Shares in United Airlines Holdings Inc. were down about 2.4% in extended trading following the release of the earnings report.