Article from BTNews 6 JUNE 2016
Flybe annual results
Next Thursday will see the announcement of the 2015/2016 results for Flybe, Britain’s third largest airline. The market will look with interest, the shares crashing from around 90p at the end of last year to 53p at the close of the London Stock Exchange last Friday.
During the same period, IAG has not really moved at all, hovering around 550p, while easyJet has dipped slightly from 1700p to 1500p with profit taking. Fuel prices have remained low, benefiting carriers with astute buying policies, and IATA is predicting a 7% drop in fares for the next 12 months. At the time of last year’s results, Flybe had cash reserves of £177.9m. Current market capitalisation is £114m.
Over the past few months, Saad Hammed, chief executive of Flybe, has kept himself to himself, with the exception of a couple of carefully selected media outlets. Flybe has been aggressive with starting new routes and announcing commercial deals but some schedules have been quietly dropped. Its active fleet is 48 Bombardier Q400 and 19 Embraer E series.
Northolt is seen by many as a potential winner with little investment but the airline appears to blow hot and cold, chairman Simon Laffin, said to be in charge of the project, advised by the same consultants as Heathrow Hub.
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