Originally Posted by
iahflyr
The numbers looked pretty good to me, although it seems Wall Street is focusing on the PRASM decrease of 5.8%. It looks like the stock will open down despite good earnings.
The one thing that scares me about these numbers is just how much of that profit comes from fuel cost savings. Fuel costs for the quarter are down $1.2 Billion from last year (3.1 Billion in 2014 vs. 1.9 Billion in 2015). So the vast majority of that profit is from something United cannot control. What is UAL's plan for when fuel prices go back up to what they were last year, or even worse, oil goes back above $100/barrel.
The dollar is also strong, which is driving down PRASM. It makes us less competitive internationally, which lowers revenue. Fuel down, dollar up. Fuel up, dollar down. The sky isn't falling, fuel price is but one of the factors.