Icelandair Group 3Q2010 profits surge, upgrades FY2010 EBITDA

Icelandair Group revenue up 9% - financial highlights for the three months ended 30-Sep-2010:

• Revenue*: EUR203.5 million, +8.9% year-on-year;
• Operating costs:
  • Labour: EUR34.2 million, +10%;
  • Fuel: EUR33.7 million, +2%;
• EBITDA: EUR59.8 million, +32.6%;
• EBIT: EUR49.4 million, +40.1%;
• Profit before tax: EUR41.8 million, +59.8%;
• Net profit: EUR34.0 million, +31.2%;
• Passenger numbers:
  • Icelandair: 573,043, +14%;
  • Air Iceland: 103,682, -5%;
• Load factor:
  • Icelandair: 85.0%, +4.1 ppts;
  • Air Iceland: 69.1%, -2.1 ppts;
• Cargo traffic (FTKs): stable;
• Total assets: EUR596.8 million, +2.3% when compared with the period ended 31-Dec-2009;
• Total liabilities: EUR485.7 million, -0.4% when compared with the period ended 31-Dec-2009;
• FY2010 forecast:
  • EBITDA: EUR68.7 million. [more]

*Based on the conversion rate at EUR1 = ISK152.768

Icelandair Group: "The operation of the group in October and the booking situation going into the last two months of the year have caused the company to raise its EBITDA forecast for the year from ISK9.5 billion to ISK10.5 billion. Cash at the end of September amounted to ISK7.4 billion. Notwithstanding the favourable results in the first nine months of the year, it is clear that two challenging quarters lie ahead. Continued uncertainty in the Icelandic economy is proving expensive for the company and next year it is probable that competition in international flights to and from Iceland will become significantly more severe. At the same time, increased seating capacity may be anticipated on transatlantic routes; however, we believe that the Company is well positioned to meet this competition through increased services, efficient pricing and a steady supply of capacity to and from Iceland," Björgólfur Jóhannsson, CEO. Source: Icelandair, 15-Nov-2010.