Investing.com -- United Airlines Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: UAL) reported third quarter results that narrowly missed analyst expectations and issued fourth quarter guidance significantly below Wall Street forecasts, sending shares down almost 4% in after-hours trading Tuesday.

The airline posted adjusted diluted earnings per share of $2.54 for the third quarter, missing the analyst estimate of $2.58 by $0.04. Total operating revenue reached $17.88 billion, just shy of the $17.89 billion consensus estimate, though up 17% YoY from the prior year period. The company guided fourth quarter EPS in a range of $0.50 to $1.50, with a midpoint of $1.00 falling well short of the analyst consensus of $1.88.

United carried a record 49.5 million customers during the quarter despite facing a $1.8 billion increase in fuel expense compared to third quarter 2025, as jet fuel prices remained volatile. The company achieved adjusted pre-tax earnings of $1.1 billion with an adjusted pre-tax margin of 6.2%. Total revenue per available seat mile rose 16% YoY, representing the airline's best quarterly unit revenue growth since the pandemic.

"Our employees met the challenge of our ever-changing environment and our results prove the resilience of focusing on building a brand-loyal airline for customers," said United CEO Scott Kirby.

The airline saw broad-based revenue strength across segments, with premium revenue up 17%, basic economy up 16%, loyalty revenue up 17%, and cargo revenue up 23% compared to the third quarter of 2025. Contracted business revenue increased 26% during the quarter.

United expects fourth quarter total operating revenue growth to accelerate versus the third quarter with an over 20% YoY increase. The company also noted it has installed Starlink Wi-Fi on more than 640 aircraft, now available on approximately half of all United flights.

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