Southwest Airlines Earnings: Better Than Feared
Last Thursday, Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) reported a record third-quarter loss of nearly $1.2 billion, as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to weigh heavily on air travel demand. The company also recently warned employees that it will need to furlough some workers in early 2021 unless its labor unions agree to temporary pay cuts -- or the federal government provides additional stimulus funds.
However, while the results were bad by any objective measure, they were better than management -- and many Wall Street analysts -- had initially feared. That's a great sign for shareholders that Southwest Airlines will be able to emerge from the current crisis in a strong position.
Like other U.S. airlines, Southwest Airlines saw demand start to improve in a meaningful way during late May and June. Unfortunately, that momentum petered out in July, as a surge in COVID-19 cases in many parts of the country frightened off some would-be travelers.
Source Fool.com
