AZUL - Why Brazilian Airline Stocks Are Flying High Today
2023-03-06 11:00:36 ET
Brazilian airline Azul (NYSE: AZUL) lost more money than expected in the last three months of 2022, but investors are more focused on an announcement that the airline has reworked its agreements with aircraft lessors. Shares of Azul climbed more than 50% on Monday morning, and shares of domestic rival Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes (NYSE: GOL) are up more than 20% on hope that conditions are improving in this major aviation market.
Airline stocks have been hit by a lot of turbulence in recent years. The pandemic caused travel demand to evaporate, leaving companies scrambling to cut costs. While conditions have improved dramatically in the United States, in other parts of the world, including Brazil, the recovery has been more choppy.
Azul lost 610.5 million reais ($117.7 million) in the fourth quarter, significantly more than the 436 million reais it lost in the fourth quarter of 2021 and worse than the 562 million reais loss that analysts had expected. Total operating revenue was up 19.4% in the quarter to 4.45 billion reais ($860 million), but that was slightly below forecast.
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Why Brazilian Airline Stocks Are Flying High Today