JetBlue’s Q4 2023 Results: Impressive Performance

JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ: JBLU) today reported its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2023.

“We closed the year on a strong note thanks to the hard work and continued execution of our team as fourth quarter revenue and costs beat our expectations,” said Robin Hayes, JetBlue’s chief executive officer. “Looking ahead, I am confident that the next chapter of JetBlue, under Joanna’s leadership, will deliver a refreshed focus on our core customer, expanded opportunities for our crewmembers, and a return to JetBlue’s historical earnings power for our shareholders.”

“2024 is an important year of change for JetBlue and we are taking aggressive action, including launching $300 million of revenue initiatives, to return to profitability and deliver value for our shareholders. We are moving with renewed rigor and discipline as we refocus our energy and play to our strengths, further deepening our unique competitive positioning,” said Joanna Geraghty, JetBlue’s president and chief operating officer.

Fourth Quarter 2023 Financial Results

• Net loss for the fourth quarter of 2023 under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”) of $104 million or $(0.31) per share. Excluding special items, adjusted net loss for the fourth quarter of 2023 of $63 million ⁽¹⁾ or $(0.19) per share.
• Fourth quarter of 2023 capacity increased by 3.3% year-over-year.
• Operating revenue of $2.3 billion for the fourth quarter of 2023, down 3.7% year-over-year.
• Operating expense per available seat mile (“CASM”) for the fourth quarter of 2023 decreased 2.4% year-over-year.
• Operating expense per available seat mile, excluding fuel and related taxes, other non-airline operating expenses, and special items (“CASM ex-Fuel”) ⁽¹⁾ for the fourth quarter of 2023 increased 7.6% ⁽¹⁾ year-over-year.
• Average fuel price in the fourth quarter of 2023 of $3.08 per gallon, including hedges.

Fourth Quarter 2023 Key Highlights

• Executed on Our Cost Initiatives
  • Achieved $70 million in cost savings under our structural cost program in 2023 keeping JetBlue on track to deliver run-rate savings of $175 million to $200 million by the end of 2024.
  • Realized $55 million in cumulative cost savings from our fleet modernization program, which is expected to deliver $75 million in cost savings through 2024 as we replace the Embraer E190s with the margin-accretive A220s.
• Provided Exceptional Service for Our Customers
  • Delivered excellent operational performance in the fourth quarter with a completion factor of 99.8%, JetBlue’s best fourth quarter completion factor since 2004.
  • Recognized by “The Points Guy” with an Editors’ Choice Award for Best Economy Class across U.S. airlines for the fourth time.
  • Launched new TrueBlue^® loyalty program offering new perks and options to customers, which to date has generated exceptional growth and engagement, particularly from Mosaic customers.
• Initiated Strategic Network Changes
  • Redeployed assets to outperforming leisure and VFR routes and began the resizing of our presence at LaGuardia.
  • Expanded service to the Caribbean with new nonstop flights to St. Kitts and Nevis’s Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw International Airport from New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), as well as new routes between the Dominican Republic and Orlando, Grenada and Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), the Bahamas and Los Angeles and Belize City and JFK.
  • Added new transatlantic destinations with daily service between JFK and Paris Charles de Gaulle, JFK and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS), and BOS and AMS, in addition to the announcement of two new seasonal routes to Dublin and Edinburgh, both launching in Spring 2024.
• Advanced Our Progress as a Sustainability Leader
  • Reduced our 2023 carbon emissions by 6% versus 2019 levels driven by fleet upgrades, a doubling of our use of sustainable aviation fuel versus 2022, and fuel optimization efforts.
  • Furthered efforts to diversify our talent pool and boost career accessibility in pilot and technician roles through our Gateways Program, with two-thirds of participants from underrepresented groups.

Balance Sheet and Liquidity

• Reached agreement to defer ~$2.5 billion of planned aircraft capital expenditures from 2024 – 2027 to 2028 and thereafter, providing a more consistent level of annual aircraft deliveries through the end of the decade.
• Ended the fourth quarter with $1.7 billion in unrestricted cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments, and long-term marketable securities (excluding our $600 million undrawn revolving credit facility).

Outlook

“As we look ahead in 2024, we are seeing positive momentum in our revenue growth. Demand during peak periods remains strong, and we continue to manage our capacity during off-peak periods to reflect evolving demand trends. We plan to continue to refine our network and product offering to better serve our leisure customers while diversifying revenues with margin-accretive initiatives,” continued Geraghty.

We remain intensely focused on restoring profitability, taking steps to ensure every dollar we invest is making an impact. As part of these efforts, we are carefully evaluating deeper cuts to our controllable costs beyond our ongoing fleet modernization and structural cost programs. Through these initiatives, coupled with the evolution of our network and product offering, I am confident in our ability to re-establish profitability and position JetBlue to restore historical earnings power,” said Ursula Hurley, JetBlue’s chief financial officer.

Earnings Call Details

JetBlue will conduct a conference call to discuss its quarterly earnings today, January 30, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. A live broadcast of the conference call will also be available via the internet at http://investor.jetblue.com. The webcast replay and presentation materials will be archived on the company’s website.

For further details, see the fourth quarter 2023 Earnings Presentation available via the internet at http://investor.jetblue.com.