Copa Holdings, S.A. (Copa Airlines) has announced financial results for the third quarter of 2023 (3Q23).
The following financial information, unless otherwise indicated, is presented in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). See the accompanying reconciliation of non-IFRS financial information to IFRS financial information included in the financial tables section of this earnings release. Unless otherwise stated, all comparisons with prior periods refer to the third quarter of 2022 (3Q22).
OPERATING AND FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
- Copa Holdings reported a net profit of US$187.4 million for 3Q23 or US$4.72 per share. Excluding special items comprised of a net gain of US$12.2 million related to the settlement of the Company’s convertible notes and an unrealized mark-to-market gain of US$0.8 million related to the value of financial investments, the Company would have reported a net profit of US$174.4 million or US$4.39 per share.
- Copa Holdings reported an operating profit of US$205.0 million and a 23.6% operating margin for the quarter, as compared to an operating profit of US$143.7 million and an operating margin of 17.8% in 3Q22.
- Passenger traffic, measured in terms of revenue passenger miles (RPMs), increased by 13.3% year over year, while capacity measured in available seat miles (ASMs) increased by 12.1%. As a result, the load factor for the quarter increased by 0.9 percentage points to 87.8%, as compared to 3Q22.
- Total revenues for 3Q23 increased 7.2% to US$867.7 million driven by higher capacity and load factors, while yields decreased by 5.0% to 13.4 cents. Consequently, revenue per available seat mile (RASM) decreased by 4.3% as compared to 3Q22 to 12.2 cents.
- Operating cost per available seat mile (CASM) decreased 11.2% from 10.5 cents in 3Q22 to 9.3 cents in 3Q23, mainly driven by a decrease of 21.3% in the price of jet fuel per gallon and lower sales and distribution costs. CASM excluding fuel (Ex-fuel CASM) decreased by 2.1% in the quarter to 5.8 cents, when compared to 3Q22.
- The Company ended the quarter with approximately US$1.2 billion in cash, short-term and long-term investments, which represent 34.0% of the last twelve months’ revenues.
- In September, Copa Holdings completed the previously announced redemption of its 4.50% Convertible Senior Notes due 2025. The redemption resulted in a net settlement of US$350.0 million in cash, plus approximately 3.7 million shares issued to noteholders.
- The Company closed the quarter with total debt, including lease liabilities, of US$1.7 billion, while our Adjusted Net Debt to EBITDA ratio ended at 0.4 times.
- During the quarter, the Company took delivery of two Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft, ending the quarter with a consolidated fleet of 103 aircraft – 67 Boeing 737-800s, 26 Boeing 737 MAX 9s, 9 Boeing 737-700s, and 1 Boeing 737-800 freighter.
- Copa Airlines had an on-time performance for the quarter of 89.4% and a flight completion factor of 99.8%, once again positioning itself among the very best in the industry.
Subsequent Events
- In November, the Company took delivery of two Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft and expects to receive one additional aircraft during the remainder of 2023. The Company expects to end the year with 106 aircraft.
- In October, the Company started service to Barquisimeto, Venezuela, bringing the total number of destinations in its network to 81, maintaining its position as the hub with the most non-stop international destinations in Latin America.
- In October, the Company completed its previously disclosed Share Repurchase Program and on November 15, 2023, the board of directors of Copa Holdings approved a new US$200 million Share Repurchase Program. Purchases will be made subject to market and economic conditions, applicable legal requirements, and other relevant factors.
- Copa Holdings will make its fourth dividend payment of the year of US$0.82 per share on December 15, 2023, to all Class A and Class B shareholders on record as of November 30, 2023.