easyJet expects FY2010 profit to exceed target, Sep-2010 pax up 8%

easyJet stated (06-Oct-2010) it expects to report a profit before tax result exceeding GBP150 million, the top end of its previous guidance range of GBP100 million to GBP150 million, for the 12 months ended 30-Sep-2010, due to "robust" traffic growth. Passenger numbers transported by the carrier rose 7.9% year-on-year to 48.8 million while load factor increased 1.5 ppt to 87.0% during the period. For the month of Sep-2010, passenger numbers rose 8.0% to 4.8 million while load factor increased 1.2 ppt to 89.3%. The LCC expects total revenue per seat at constant currency for the quarter ended 30-Sep-2010 to increase by more than 6% year-on-year. easyJet downgraded its forecast of the impact of the volcanic eruption in Iceland on the carrier's FY2010 results from GBP65 million to GBP60 million. The carrier raised concerns regarding the ongoing official and unofficial strike by air traffic controllers in France, Spain and Greece, which is expected to cost the carrier up to GBP6 million in customer compensation for flights cancelled in Sep-2010. easyJet is scheduled to release its FY2010 results and outlook on 16-Nov-2010. [more]