JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU) reported Q3 EPS of ($0.12), $0.05 better than the analyst estimate of ($0.17). Revenue for the quarter came in at $1.97 billion versus the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion.

Financial Performance and Outlook:

“Our third quarter revenue and Adjusted EBITDA(1) came in above the high-end of the ranges we expected in early-September. This was largely driven by stronger than expected performance of Fare Options and a mid-September pick-up in bookings, which drove a revenue result in the third quarter that we believe to be among the best in the industry,” said Ursula Hurley, JetBlue’s Chief Financial Officer.

“For the fourth quarter, we estimate our EBITDA(2) will range between negative ($50) million to positive $50 million dollars. This sequential decrease is due to the seasonal leisure demand pattern, pressure from the recent material spike in fuel prices, as well as ramp-up related labor costs.

Our teams continue to work diligently to improve our cost structure and mitigate the near-term pressures we are facing as we restore the business and invest for our long-term earnings power. We continue to expect CASM ex-Fuel to improve from a double-digit growth rate in the second half of 2021 to low-single-digit growth in 2022, versus 2019 levels.

We continue to make good progress in returning our balance sheet to investment grade credit metrics. Looking ahead, we plan to maintain a balanced approach to capital allocation to help achieve our financial targets, enabled by our relatively strong balance sheet which we believe ranks among the best in the industry.”

For earnings history and earnings-related data on JetBlue Airways (JBLU) click here.