47% load factor that is painful!!! I hope it improves for Indy
FLYi seen returning to profit as soon as '05-Barron's
Sun Sep 19, 2004 02:01 PM ET
NEW YORK, Sept 19 (Reuters) - FLYi (FLYI.O: Quote, Profile, Research) , which was formerly known as Atlantic Coast Airlines Holdings Inc., is upgrading its fleets to bigger jets and may be poised to return to profitability if its competition weakens, Barrons said in its Sept. 20 sedition.
For now, FLYi, which operates Independence Air, reported that only 47 percent of its seats were full in July, which the worst load factor of 29 major and regional carriers in the United States, and it is not expected to return to profitability until mid-2005, Barron's said.
The new jets from Airbus and Canadair regional jets and weakened competition that had trouble profitably matching Independence Air's fares gives the carrier an opportunity to return to profitability, Barron's said.
For the first six months of 2004, the company had reported a loss of $23.5 million from retiring some aircraft and starting up Independence Air.
"It can't get much worse, and it could get a lot better in 2005, so a doubling or tripling of the stock price is a decent bet -- not unusual for a volatile airline stock -- but far from a sure thing," said Barron's, a weekly financial newspaper.
FLYi's Independence air serves a lot of underserved markets and two of its big competitors, US Airways (UAIRQ.OQ: Quote, Profile, Research) and UAL Corp. (UALAQ.OB: Quote, Profile, Research) , are in bankruptcy, Barron's said.
UAL's United Airlines might curtail operations at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, which could benefit Independence Air, Barron's said.
FLYi converted its business model to a low-fare carrier after it had previously operated regional airlines United Express and Delta Connection to bring passengers on short-haul flights to hubs for United Airlines and Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL.N: Quote, Profile, Research)
Independence Air has given Airbus firm orders for 28 A319s, Barron's said. The first four should be going into service this year, 18 more next year and the last six in the first half of 2006.
FLYi's shares traded at $4.08 on Friday. In January 2002, the stock had traded as high as $30.23 when it was operating under its old name.
In December 2003, Mesa Air Group Inc. (MESA.O: Quote, Profile, Research) abandoned stock swap takeover that valued Atlantic Coast Airlines at $10.40 per share when the bid was first announced. FLYi was not immediately available for comment.
FLYi seen returning to profit as soon as '05-Barron's
Sun Sep 19, 2004 02:01 PM ET
NEW YORK, Sept 19 (Reuters) - FLYi (FLYI.O: Quote, Profile, Research) , which was formerly known as Atlantic Coast Airlines Holdings Inc., is upgrading its fleets to bigger jets and may be poised to return to profitability if its competition weakens, Barrons said in its Sept. 20 sedition.
For now, FLYi, which operates Independence Air, reported that only 47 percent of its seats were full in July, which the worst load factor of 29 major and regional carriers in the United States, and it is not expected to return to profitability until mid-2005, Barron's said.
The new jets from Airbus and Canadair regional jets and weakened competition that had trouble profitably matching Independence Air's fares gives the carrier an opportunity to return to profitability, Barron's said.
For the first six months of 2004, the company had reported a loss of $23.5 million from retiring some aircraft and starting up Independence Air.
"It can't get much worse, and it could get a lot better in 2005, so a doubling or tripling of the stock price is a decent bet -- not unusual for a volatile airline stock -- but far from a sure thing," said Barron's, a weekly financial newspaper.
FLYi's Independence air serves a lot of underserved markets and two of its big competitors, US Airways (UAIRQ.OQ: Quote, Profile, Research) and UAL Corp. (UALAQ.OB: Quote, Profile, Research) , are in bankruptcy, Barron's said.
UAL's United Airlines might curtail operations at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, which could benefit Independence Air, Barron's said.
FLYi converted its business model to a low-fare carrier after it had previously operated regional airlines United Express and Delta Connection to bring passengers on short-haul flights to hubs for United Airlines and Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL.N: Quote, Profile, Research)
Independence Air has given Airbus firm orders for 28 A319s, Barron's said. The first four should be going into service this year, 18 more next year and the last six in the first half of 2006.
FLYi's shares traded at $4.08 on Friday. In January 2002, the stock had traded as high as $30.23 when it was operating under its old name.
In December 2003, Mesa Air Group Inc. (MESA.O: Quote, Profile, Research) abandoned stock swap takeover that valued Atlantic Coast Airlines at $10.40 per share when the bid was first announced. FLYi was not immediately available for comment.
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