Easyjet is celebrating a successful year, with passenger numbers up 10.2 per cent and a 16.8 per cent increase in revenue to nearly £5.9 billion.
The financial upswing for the year to 30 September comes despite a £152 million loss from the acquisition of part of Air Berlin’s operations at Berlin Tegel and a £65 million investment in a change in IT development.
Easyjet’s total profit before tax increased by £60 million over 2017 to £445 million.
The carrier says it is pursuing ‘disciplined growth’, with 17 firm orders for new Airbus aircraft, 18 deferrals and 25 purchase options over the next five years.
Forward bookings are showing ‘solid demand’, and Easyjet has prepared itself for any Brexit eventuality by operating airlines in the UK, Switzerland and Austria.
Commenting on the results, CEO Johan Lundgren, said: “Easyjet has delivered a great performance during the year, growing headline profit before tax by 41 per cent, once again flying a record number of passengers at our highest-ever annual load factor. The integration of new operations at Tegel has also progressed well and our brand consideration in Berlin has grown strongly. Our financial success and increasing customer loyalty demonstrated the resilience of our operations, the underlying strength of our business and our unrivalled customer experience.
“Our strategy continues to ensure we are well positioned for the future. We have made considerable progress on our new initiatives in holidays, business and loyalty, which will enable us to grow profitably. While disruption continues to be the major challenge for the industry, we are investing in resilience to help to mitigate the impact on our customers.
“Forward bookings are solid, with 50 per cent of seats sold in the first half, in line with the prior year. We are confident in our positioning for the future and are focused on driving future returns, positive free cash flow over the longer term and maximising our headline profit per seat as we continue to deliver value for our customers and shareholders.”
easyjet.com