“Thanks to the outstanding efforts of JetBlue’s crewmembers, we closed the year with strong fourth quarter performance, driving the highest full-year revenue result in our history, and solid cost execution as we hit our full-year cost target. We believe we’re well positioned to further build on that success in 2023, with a disciplined plan to continue strengthening our foundations – both operationally and financially,” said Robin Hayes, JetBlue’s Chief Executive Officer.
“We expect to gain further momentum in the business in 2023 with solid revenue performance throughout the year as we execute on our commercial initiatives and maintain a strong focus on cost control. Together, we expect these efforts to deliver margins approaching pre-pandemic levels as we move through the year, as we continue on a path to drive sustainable long-term earnings expansion and create long-term value for all stakeholders."
Fourth Quarter 2022 Financial Results
- Net income for the fourth quarter of 2022 under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) of $24 million or $0.07 per share. Excluding one-time items, adjusted net income for the fourth quarter of 2022 of $72 million(1) or $0.22 per share.
- Fourth quarter of 2022 capacity increased by 2.4% compared to the fourth quarter of 2019.
- Operating revenue of $2.4 billion for the fourth quarter of 2022, the highest fourth quarter operating revenue in company history.
- Revenue per available seat mile (RASM) increased 16.1% for the fourth quarter of 2022 compared to the fourth quarter of 2019, despite a negative impact from Hurricane Nicole.
- Operating expenses per available seat mile (CASM) for the fourth quarter of 2022 increased 28.4% compared to the fourth quarter of 2019.
- 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 2022 increased 9.9%(1) compared to the fourth quarter of 2019, resulting in industry leading unit cost performance.
- Fuel price in the fourth quarter of 2022 of $3.70 per gallon, including hedges.
Balance Sheet and Liquidity
- $1.6 billion in unrestricted cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments, and long-term marketable securities at quarter-end (excluding our $600 million undrawn revolving credit facility).
- Maintained an adjusted debt to capital ratio of 52%(1) as of December 31, 2022.
- Paid approximately $114 million in debt and finance lease obligations during the fourth quarter of 2022.
2022 Key Highlights
- Returned to profitability in the second half of 2022 with revenue growth at record levels, combined with an acute focus on maintaining an optimal low-cost structure.
- Delivered an excellent operation in the fourth quarter, including an industry-leading completion factor of 98.2% in December. This was despite the impact of Hurricane Nicole and Winter Storm Elliott.
- Added flights in New York and Boston as the Northeast Alliance (NEA) continues to bring low fares and great service to more communities, and boost competition in the region.
- Continued ramping up our transatlantic franchise to five daily flights between the Northeast and London, and announced new service to Paris.
- Became the anchor tenant at Orlando International Airport’s new Terminal C, moved operations at LaGuardia Airport into the new, world-class Terminal B, and signed an agreement to become a minority investor in John F. Kennedy International Airport's Terminal 6.
- Introduced the new TrueBlue® loyalty program, bringing added value and new perks to a broad set of customers.
- Continued to lead the industry in sustainability. Announced our validated science-based emissions reduction target, with a plan that would effectively reduce our per-seat emissions in half by 2035 from 2019 levels. Also announced a new agreement with Fidelis New Energy to supply 92 million gallons of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) over a five-year term with a target start date of 2025, bringing meaningful progress toward our goal to convert 10% of our jet fuel to SAF by 2030.
- Recognized by "The Points Guy" with an Editors’ Choice Award for Best Economy Class in the world and by "Business Traveler USA" as Best Budget Airline.
Outlook
“As we kick off 2023, we’re pleased to see the demand environment remain solid into the seasonally trough period of the year,” said Joanna Geraghty, JetBlue’s President and Chief Operating Officer.
“We’re excited to continue building on last year’s record performance as we look at another strong year of revenue growth, underpinned by multiple network and commercial initiatives, including strong earnings accretion from the NEA as our markets mature. We also continue to make progress on our multi-year path to grow our loyalty revenue stream as a percentage of our total revenue base and close the gap to best in class loyalty performance.”
First Quarter and Full-Year 2023 Outlook | Estimated 1Q 2023 | Estimated FY 2023 |
Available Seat Miles (ASMs) Year-Over-Year | 5.5% – 8.5% | 5.5% – 8.5% |
Revenue Year-Over-Year | 28% – 32% | High Single Digits to Low Double Digits |
CASM Ex-Fuel(2) (Non-GAAP) Year-Over-Year | 2% – 4% | 1.5% – 4.5% |
Estimated Fuel Price per Gallon(3) | $3.20 – $3.35(4) | $2.95 – $3.15 |
Interest Expense | $40 – $50 million | $200 – $210 million |
Adjusted (Loss)/Earnings per Share | ($0.45) – ($0.35) | $0.70 – $1.00 |
“We’re confident that we’re on a path to materially improve our financial performance throughout the remainder of 2023 and deliver a full-year adjusted profit with margins approaching pre-pandemic levels. As we progress through the year, we expect to generate strong margins with the combination of solid revenue momentum and continued progress on our structural cost program,” said Ursula Hurley, JetBlue’s Chief Financial Officer.
JetBlue is New York's Hometown Airline®, and a leading carrier in Boston, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood, Los Angeles, Orlando, and San Juan. JetBlue carries customers to more than 100 cities throughout the United States, Latin America, Caribbean, Canada, and United Kingdom. For more information and the best fares, .
Notes
(1) | Non-GAAP financial measure; Note A provides a reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures used in this release and explains the reasons management believes that presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures provide useful information to investors regarding JetBlue's financial condition and results of operations. |
(2) | With respect to JetBlue’s CASM ex-fuel guidance, JetBlue is unable to provide a reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measure to GAAP because the excluded items have not yet occurred and cannot be reasonably predicted. The reconciling information that is unavailable would include a forward-looking range of financial performance measures beyond our control, such as fuel costs, which are subject to many economic and political factors. Accordingly, a reconciliation to CASM is not available without unreasonable effort. In addition, this includes an impact from a new ALPA agreement worth approximately 1% point to the first quarter of 2023 and 3% points to the full year 2023. |
| (3) | Includes fuel taxes and hedges. |
| (4) | JetBlue utilizes the forward Brent crude curve and the forward Brent crude to jet crack spread to calculate the unhedged portion of its prompt quarter. As of January 13, 2023, the forward Brent crude per barrel price was $85 and the crack spread averaged $41 per barrel for the first quarter of 2023. |