Will Airline Stocks Fly High?

Have you benn on a plane flight recently? I've been on several plane flights over the last year and one thing I have noticed is that the plane is always full. Always! Not one extra seat available. And this is on a few different airlines, Delta (DAL), KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (KLMR), and JetBlue (JBLU). I remember years ago, taking flights on PSA with only eight people on the plane. There were almost as many airline staff workers (pilots and flight attendants) as there were passengers.

Now airlines have their act together, and are able to fill every seat. Any empty seat is less revenue, and if they can fill those seats, even at very discounted prices, it's additional revenue. When you consider all the flights of an airline in a day, and multiply those flights times 365 days, the revenue can add up.

With the merger of the American Airlines holding company, AMR (AAMRQ) and US Airways (LCC), it will mean less competition. And of course with crude oil dropping in price to $88 per barrel from over $105 a barrel a year ago, fuel costs for the airlines have been kept in check.

So what's an investor to do who is looking for a high flyer? According to the free list of airline stocks at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, there are over 25 airlines to choose from, with a half dozen paying dividends.

Let's take a look at Alaska Air Group (ALK), which provides flights to the western United States, Canada, and Mexico. The stock trades at 13.7 times trailing earnings and 9.5 times forward earnings. Revenues for the latest quarter at year end were up 8.4%, however earnings dropped 31.3%. The company's next earnings announcement is scheduled for April 25. The company carries over a billion dollars in debt, but it does have $1.25 billion in cash.

The Latin American airline company, Copa Holdings SA (CPA), is doing well. Based out of Panama City, Panama, it flies to 64 destinations in 29 countries in North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. The stock has a trailing price-to-earnings ratio of 16.4 and a forward PE of 10.9. Revenues were up by a strong 19.4%, but earnings dropped for the latest quarter by 17%. Next announcement is May 6. This is one of the few companies that pays a dividend with a Certificate of Deposit beating yield of 1.9%.

Southwest Airlines (LUV) is another dividend payer, with a small yield of 0.3%. The stock trades at 23.8 times current earnings and 11.1 times forward earnings. Next earnings announcement is April 25.

To see a complete list of all the major and regional airline stocks, which can be downloaded, sorted, and updated, go to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Disclosure: Author owns JBLU.

By Stockerblog.com

Top Airline Stocks

During the last month, airline stocks have outperformed the Standard & Poor's 500. The Dow Jones U.S. Airlines Index was up 5.5% versus 4.5% for the S&P 500. This in spite of the recent news about pilot and flight attendant meltdowns, which you think might scare off a few passengers.

However, if the economy has hit bottom and is starting to to turn around, it might be worth taking a flier on airline stocks, as they may take off. According to the free list at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, there are about twenty airline stocks, several of which pay dividends. Not all of them are in great financial shape, and you may have to look outside the United States for the better quality airline companies.

For example, Lan Airlines (LFL) is a Chile based airline that provides passenger and cargo air transportation services. The company has over 120 passenger planes and offers its primary services in Chile, Peru, Argentina, Colombia, and Ecuador. The stock trades at 20.5 times forward earnings and pays a yield of 2.3%. Revenues for the latest reported quarter were up 19.3%, however, earnings dropped 31.6%.

Domestically, there is the Dallas, Texas based Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV), which operates about 700 aircraft throughout the United States. The stock has a forward price to earnings ratio of 8.2 and even pays a small dividend of 0.2%. Quarterly earnings wer up 16% on a 32% boost in revenues.

For a free list of approximately 20 airline stocks which includes information about the price-to-earnings ratios and yields, go to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com.

Disclosure: Author didn't own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com