Alaska Air Group, Inc. ALK reported fourth-quarter 2017 earnings per share (excluding $2.14 from non-recurring items) of 83 cents in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Earnings decreased 46.79% on a year-over-year basis.
How Was the Estimate Revision Trend?
Investors should note that the earnings estimate revisions for Alaska Air Group depicted a gloomy picture prior to the earnings release. The stock had seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for fourth-quarter earnings being revised 7.8% over the last 30 days.
However, the company has an impressive earnings history having outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters with an average beat of 2.9%.
Revenues Higher Than Expected
Alaska Air Group recorded revenues of $1,962 million, which came marginally above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,961.8 million. Also, it compared favorably with the year-ago number of $1,524 million.
Alaska Air Group, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise
Alaska Air Group, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise | Alaska Air Group, Inc. Quote
Key Stats to Note: The airline witnessed a 5.1% decrease in consolidated passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM: a key measure of unit revenue) in the quarter. For the first quarter of 2018, the carrier expects cost per available seat mile (CASM), excluding fuel and special items to rise approximately 6% year over year. While the same for 2018 is predicted to rise around 2.5%. Economic fuel cost per gallon is anticipated to increase 21% in the first quarter of 2018.
Zacks Rank: Currently, Alaska Air Group has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) but that could change following the company’s earnings report which was just released. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Check back later for our full write up on this Alaska Air Group earnings report later!
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