Higher fuel costs, the weak pound and a delayed Easter break this year have not been good for budget airline EasyJet (EZJ). These issues combined for a bigger than expected pre-tax loss for the six months to 31 March 2017 of £212m. The market had been anticipating a £203.8m loss, according to Reuters data.
Having Easter shift into the second half alone cost the company £45m, EasyJet says. The slide in sterling prompted by Brexit worries added an extra £82m drag.
Investors are not impressed with shares in the discount flyer sliding nearly 6% to £12.32.
On the plus side, EasyJet flew a record number of passengers during the half, with the 33.8m carried showing a 9% jump year-on-year. The flip-side to that is cheap fares needed to get bums on seats. Revenue per seat declined 9.7% to £46.32 even after stripping out currency wobbles.
‘The outlook looks a bit more positive with forward bookings up year-on-year, better yields and negative currency impact abating,’ says Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Robin Byde.
