American Airlines lifts 2024 profit forecast after sales strategy shift, posts third-quarter loss

American Airlines posted a third-quarter loss but raised its profit forecast for the year as CEO Robert Isom said the company’s sales strategy shift earlier this year is paying off.

The carrier said it expects to earn between 25 cents and 50 cents a share on an adjusted basis for the fourth quarter, above the 29 cents analysts polled by LSEG expected. For the full year, the airline expects to earn as much as an adjusted $1.60 a share, ahead of an earlier American forecast for no more than $1.30 a share.

American in May fired its chief commercial officer after a sales strategy that aimed to drive direct bookings backfired and quickly reverted much of its sales model.

“We have taken aggressive action to reset our sales and distribution strategy and reengage the business travel community, which we’re confident will improve our revenue performance over time,” Isom said in an earnings release on Thursday. “We have heard great feedback from travel agencies and corporate customers as we work to rebuild the foundation of our commercial strategy and make it easy for customers to do business with American.”

Here is how American performed in the third quarter compared with Wall Street estimates compiled by LSEG:

• Earnings per share: 30 cents adjusted vs. 16 cents
• Revenue: $13.65 billion vs. $13.49 billion expected

American’s revenue rose 1.2% to a record $13.65 billion for the three months ended Sept. 30, but posted a net loss of $149 million, narrower than the $545 million loss it reported a year earlier. Unit revenue fell 2% in the quarter.

For the fourth quarter, American said its unit revenue will likely drop between 1% to 3% compared with last year, with capacity up as much as 3% year over year.