What to look for when Alaska Air Group (ALK) reports Q1 2024 earnings

Shares of Alaska Air Group Inc. (NYSE: ALK) were up over 1% on Thursday. The stock has gained 8% year-to-date. The Seattle-based airline is scheduled to report its first quarter 2024 earnings results on Thursday, April 18, before markets open. Here’s what to expect from the earnings report:

Revenue

Analysts are projecting revenue of $2.19 billion for Alaska in Q1 2024. This compares to revenue of $2.2 billion reported in Q1 2023. In Q4 2023, operating revenue increased 3% year-over-year to $2.5 billion.

Earnings

Alaska has guided for adjusted loss per share of $1.15-1.05 for Q1 2024. The consensus estimate is for a loss of $0.93 per share. This compares to a loss of $0.62 per share reported in Q1 2023. In Q4 2023, adjusted EPS amounted to $0.30.

Points to note

On its last quarterly call, Alaska said it was seeing strong performance from its high-frequency business markets as well as several leisure markets. In a recent investor update, the company said its business performance benefited from strategic network adjustments, strong demand, and continued recovery of West Coast business travel.

Alaska lost around $160 million in Q1 pretax profit, due to the Flight 1282 accident and the Boeing 737-9 MAX grounding, mainly comprising lost revenues, costs due to irregular operations, and costs to restore its fleet to operating service. Although the company received compensation from Boeing, this is not included in the adjusted loss per share outlook. The outlook reflects approx. $0.95 of lost earnings caused by these events.

It is also worth looking out for updates on the company’s proposed acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines which is expected to provide significant opportunities for expansion and is being seen as a positive point amid the negative events.