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SpiceJet Shares Rise As Profit Jumps 80% In July-September

Spicejet’s profit jumped 80 percent rising for the 11th straight quarter. 



A SpiceJet Ltd. aircraft prepares to land at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai. (Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg)
A SpiceJet Ltd. aircraft prepares to land at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai. (Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg)

SpiceJet Ltd.’s net profit increased for the eleventh consecutive quarter as the no-frills carrier added capacity but still failed to beat analyst estimates.

Net profit jumped 79 percent to Rs 105.3 crore in the three months ended September compared to the same quarter last year, it said in an exchange filing today. That’s below the Rs 129 crore estimated by analysts tracked by Bloomberg. The bottom line was aided by a 22 percent rise in capacity, the company said in a statement.

Revenue rose for the eighth straight quarter by 30 percent to Rs 1,814 crore but missed the estimated Rs 1,849 crore.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, and restructuring costs rose 25 percent to Rs 397 crore. The operating margin however, contracted to 21.9 percent from 22.7 percent.

Spicejet reported the highest passenger load factor amongst all airlines in the country all through the quarter, it said in a media statement. “The company witnessed a 7 percent increase in its passenger yields,” the statement added.

The budget airline, which nearly shut down its business because of a cash crunch in 2014, launched new flights on maiden routes and introduced its fourth daily flight under the regional connectivity scheme UDAN.

“SpiceJet became the first airline to introduce direct flights on multiple routes like Guwahati-Dibrugarh, Jaisalmer-Delhi and Jaipur-Varanasi, and Chennai-Belagavi, besides launching its fourth daily flight under UDAN on the Jaisalmer-Jaipur route,” Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Singh said in a statement.

The airline also confirmed its latest order for up to 50 Bombardier Q400 planes that was announced in the Paris Airshow, making it the largest single order ever for the turboprop aircraft programme.

Shares of the budget airline closed 5 percent higher at Rs 148.5 apiece after the earnings announcement.