Jordan said last week that flight disruptions and related hotel and meal compensation for passengers “will certainly have an impact” in the quarter, and said airlines are already assessing those costs.Dallas The New York-based company plans to report results on January 26.
Southwest is expected to post fourth-quarter adjusted earnings of 67 cents per share, according to analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Consensus forecasts have fallen 16% over the past four weeks, according to Bloomberg data.
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The airline continues to investigate the causes that led to the widespread cancellations and the work must be “completed expeditiously,” Jordan said in a public update released Thursday.Southwest Airlines Labor Some in the union, which had criticized the airline’s crew scheduling system before the meltdown, were involved in the review, he said.
“We are already taking swift action to mitigate the risk of this happening again,” Jordan said.
Airlines have processed three-quarters of the refund requests they receive and 95% of packages have been separated from their owners, reunited or in transit, Jordan said in an interview. The company independently evaluates claims and hires third parties to assist, so refunds take longer.
Shares were little changed after normal trading in New York. Southwest is down 24% over the last 12 months.
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