CHICAGO (AP) — United Airlines on Tuesday reported that its third-quarter profit fell 15% from a year ago but revenue trends improved thanks to low-fare carriers scaling back their growth plans for the rest of the year.
The Chicago-based airline’s directors, meanwhile, approved up to $1.5 billion to buy back shares. It’s United’s first share-repurchase program since 2020, when airlines were barred from buying back their own stock as a condition of getting pandemic-relief aid from the federal government.
United said that by September, it was seeing more strength in corporate, premium and no-frills basic economy travel.
Airline executives have complained about budget airlines cutting prices on economy-class seats because of a glut of flights. Their pricing power is improving, however, as Spirit, Southwest and others trim their schedules and reduce the supply of seats for sale.
United said a closely watched figure, revenue per seat, turned positive compared with last year on flights within the United States in August and September after lagging 2023 levels in earlier months.
United posted a third-quarter profit of $965 million, down from $1.14 billion a year earlier. Excluding special items, the airline said its adjusted earnings were $3.33 per share, beating the average forecast by analysts of $3.17 per share, according to FactSet.
Revenue rose 2.5% to $14.84 billion, topping the analysts’ average forecast of $14.77 billion.
United forecast fourth-quarter earnings of $2.50 to $3 per share, in line with analysts’ average prediction of $2.76 per share.
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