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BLOOMBERG
IAG SA raised its full-year earnings outlook after reporting a surprise profit in the typically weak first quarter, highlighting how the airline industry has rapidly bounced back from the depths of the pandemic slump.
The parent company of British Airways and Iberia now expects operating profit to exceed the upper end of its previous guidance, which called for a range of €1.8 billion ($2 billion) to €2.3 billion, London-based IAG said. IAG also said its net debt will come down by the end of the year, after previously saying the figure would remain flat.
IAG rose as much as 5.5% to 155.3 pence, the most since the start of the year. The stock has gained about 24% in value this year, the second-best performer on the 29-member Bloomberg World Airlines Index in the period behind low-cost specialist EasyJet Plc.
Operating profit in the first quarter came in at €9 million ($9.9 million), compared with a €718 million loss reported a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg had predicted a €186.3 million average loss. Airlines typically report losses for the first quarter because of slow travel demand and make up for the deficit in the stronger Easter and summer seasons.