Interesting, but not so funny, numbers

[justApilot]

Some Grim Numbers
For the Airlines

How bad are things in the airline business? Consider some numbers.

A new Boeing 737, the single-aisle, medium-size airliner that's a domestic workhorse for most carriers, costs about $50 million. Yesterday, United Airlines had a market capitalization — the current value of all outstanding stock — of about $71 million, or enough to buy a single new 737 and just about enough left over to buy and outfit a new Cessna Citation X business jet.
The market capitalization of US Airways yesterday was $11.6 million, barely enough to buy a small corporate jet. Yesterday's market capitalization for the other major carriers: Delta Air Lines, $1.1 billion; Northwest Airlines, $533.6 million; American Airlines, $410.3 million; and Continental Airlines, $352.2 million.

 

[SWA/FO]

What about SWA?

 

[WileE]

Source?

A reference to the source of this would be handy. Did it just list the big 5 or did it release numbers for the other majors like SW, NW, AMW, etc. How about the nationals? It would be interesting to see even if this is all probably a bunch of accounting doo-doo, kind of like statistics you see in the USA Today.

 

[justApilot]

oops...I thought I got it all in the cut&paste....here it is....

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/04/b...&en=62f21f27e7ae7bb8&ei=5040&partner=MOREOVER

 

[Wiggums]

What do you mean accounting doo-doo? If shares outstanding times the cost of one share is tricky math then we're all in trouble.

 

[Indapool]

What about SWA?

9.75 BILLION

 

[Ty Webb]

Some Grim Numbers
For the Airlines

The market capitalization of US Airways yesterday was $11.6 million, barely enough to buy a small corporate jet. Yesterday's market capitalization for the other major carriers: Delta Air Lines, $1.1 billion; Northwest Airlines, $533.6 million; American Airlines, $410.3 million; and Continental Airlines, $352.2 million.


AirTran's market cap this morning was $428 million. I find it hard to believe that we have a higher valuation than CAL and some of the others.

 

[Flic1]

Those airline market cap's are accurate. Market Cap is just based on share price X outstanding /issued shares. CAL for example only has about 66M shares outstanding. AirTran has about 71M. Those numbers don't reflect total revenues, just what your stock is worth overall. Just as a pointless comarison, AOL has 4.5 Billion shares outstanding with a market cap of 50 Billion. .

 

[Ty Webb]

Yup. I understand market capitalization . . . . I just find it hard to believe that the market places a higher valuation on AirTran right now, which is what market cap is all about.

 

[Flic1]

Ty-

Yeah , I hear ya. I guess from an analyst's standpoint it would currently be considered "overvalued" just based on the Price/Earnings ratio which is currently about 40. Oh well, I think it's a good play in the airline sector. I've owned it since Fall and plan to hang on to it for a while... as long as you guys keep expanding!

 

[Ty Webb]

Revenue aside, things should get more efficient from an operational standpoint . . . by October, all of the DC9's will be gone, which will bring down fuel and mx costs, and when the agreement for the new airplane is signed (looks like Airbus) it will probably include a re-financing of our existing debt (to Boeing) at a much lower interest rate, resulting in additional savings.

 

[Flying Freddie]

Ty,
I have heard that Boeing has a seat on the board of directors at AirTran. If true, how will that play out for Airbus?