United Airlines CEO expects Q2 to be a historic inflection point

United Airlines Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: UAL) on Wednesday reported weaker-than-expected Q1 results. Shares still jumped 8.0% after the air carrier said it expects to be profitable in 2022 for the first time since the start of the pandemic.

United Airlines Q1 financial highlights

• Lost $1.38 billion in the first quarter versus the year-ago figure of $1.36 billion.
• Per-share loss stood at $4.24, a slight decline from last year’s $4.29.
• On an adjusted basis, the airline holding company lost $4.24 in fiscal Q1.
• Revenue more than doubled to $7.57 billion, as per the earnings press release.
• FactSet consensus was for $4.22 of adjusted per-share loss on $7.67 billion in revenue.
• Average price per gallon of fuel was up 65% on a year-over-year basis.

Future outlook and CEO Kirby’s remarks

United Airlines is confident that it’ll return to profitability in the current fiscal quarter as revenue climbs to an all-time high.

It forecasts a 16% increase in Q2 costs (excluding fuel) but expects higher fares to offset that surge. The air carrier is looking at 17% growth in revenue per passenger mile and operating margin at 10% in the second quarter.

United expects a return to 87% of its 2019 capacity this quarter. In the earnings press release, CEO Scott Kirby said: