7DaysinParadise
Travel => General Travel => Topic started by: Bulldog on February 13, 2008, 12:43:49 PM
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Lower taxes and fuller planes helped push WestJet to a record fourth-quarter profit of $75.4 million, up 180 per cent from the same period a year ago.
Earnings were 57 cents per share, compared to $26.7 million or 21 cents per share a year earlier.
Revenue was $553.4 million, up from $452.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2006.
WestJet, based in Calgary, said more than half of the improvement in the bottom line was due to a one-time adjustment of $33.7 million from a lower federal corporate income tax rate that took effect during the quarter.
For the full year, the airline said it made $192.8 million, compared to $114.7 million in 2006.
WestJet's employee profit share for the year more than doubled to $48.6 million from $20.3 million.
"The fourth quarter capped 12 consecutive months of record load factor, revenues that surpassed $2 billion as well as increases in market share domestically and on our U.S., Caribbean and Mexican routes," CEO Sean Durfy said in a release.
The airline's load factor — the percentage of seats filled — improved to 77.7 per cent in the traditionally slow fourth quarter, up from 75.5 per cent for the same period a year earlier. The load factor for all 2007 rose by 2.5 per cent to 80.7 per cent.
Capacity increased by 16 per cent as WestJet's total registered fleet grew to 70 aircraft by the end of the year.
Revenue per passenger mile improved by 1.7 per cent as cost per available seat mile was trimmed by 0.1 per cent, despire rising fuel costs and airport and flight service expenses.
The airline said its fourth-quarter fuel bill was $142.4 million, up 34 per cent from the same period a year earlier.
"We achieved cost declines in aircraft operations, flight operations, interest, aircraft leasing costs and maintenance," Durfy said. "Our ability to effectively manage controllable costs positions us to better deal with fluctuating fuel prices."
Shares of WestJet were up 73 cents or more than four per cent to $18.03 in morning trading on the TSX.
http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2008/02/13/westjet-profit.html