(Bloomberg) -- Southwest Airlines Co. reported third-quarter profit more than double Wall Street’s estimates, a needed boost as the carrier tries to shore up financial results following a bruising fight with activist Elliott Investment Management that came to an end Thursday.
Adjusted earnings were 15 cents a share in the period, the carrier said in a statement. That topped the 7-cent average from analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Revenue was $6.87 billion, compared with $6.81 billion expected by analysts.
The results suggest Southwest is seeing progress in its efforts to slow growth and cut costs by culling money-losing routes and limiting hiring. The airline said it’s taking “urgent steps” to control expenses, including offering voluntary time off programs.
Improving performance has become a critical matter for Chief Executive Officer Bob Jordan, who drew scrutiny in recent months from Elliott. The investment firm initially called for Jordan and Chairman Gary Kelly to be replaced.
The carrier on Thursday announced an agreement with Elliott to appoint new board members and avoid a proxy battle. Under the deal, which confirmed an earlier Bloomberg report, Kelly will accelerate a previously planned retirement and Jordan will remain as CEO, according to a separate statement.
Southwest’s shares reversed an early gain following news of the pact. They were down 2.6% at 9:45 a.m. after regular trading opened in New York. The stock gained 6.4% this year through Wednesday, lagging the S&P 500 Index’s 22% advance.
Southwest was among US carriers tightening growth plans starting in September after too much capacity held down fares during the busy summer travel period. Those adjustments across the industry helped increase yield, or average fare per mile, by 2.5% over a year ago, the carrier said.
Capacity will decline about 4% this quarter on a year-over-year basis, the airline said.
Its fourth-quarter revenue for each seat flown a mile, a gauge of demand and fares, will increase as much as 5.5% from 2023. Analysts were expecting a rise of 3.5%. Non-fuel costs on the same basis and excluding profit sharing, a measure of efficiency, will climb as much as 13%, in part due to flight cancellations associated with Hurricane Milton.
Bookings for the winter holiday season have been strong, Southwest said, “demonstrating the continued resilience of the leisure travel market.”
Based on the outlook for the rest of the year, Southwest said it would repurchase an initial $250 million of stock under a $2.5 billion authorization announced in September.
New Directors
Under the changes revealed Thursday, the board will add Pierre Breber, David Cush, Sarah Feinberg, Dave Grissen, Gregg Saretsky and Patricia Watson on Nov. 1. Kelly will also leave then, earlier than a previously announced retirement in 2025, and take the role of chairman emeritus.
The activist firm agreed to a standstill and information sharing agreement with Southwest. Elliott, which owns a stake of more than 10%, also withdrew a prior request for a special shareholder meeting on Dec. 10.
Southwest already has taken a series of steps on its own, including changes to some key policies. The carrier said it would ditch free-for-all seating in favor of assigned seats and provide premium onboard options with more leg room.
It recently stopped service at multiple airports that weren’t making money and restructured others after expanding too much in 2023. The industry was hit this summer by a glut of seats that outpaced demand, forcing carriers to cut fares during the busy travel season.
Southwest said last month it would end nearly a third of its flights through Atlanta starting in April as it cuts unprofitable routes. As many as 200 flight attendant jobs and up to 140 pilot positions will be affected. The route pullback will be partially offset by expansion in Nashville and new redeye flights connecting Hawaii and the US mainland.
The carrier, which has hundreds of aircraft on order with Boeing Co. through 2031, is considering opportunities to sell planes and, in some cases, sell them to lessors and then lease them back.
(Updates with share trading in sixth paragraph)
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