- NASDAQ:AAL ended the trading session flat on Wednesday despite a 7% spike to start the day.
- Future of the airline industry remains bleak as Federal-aid dries up and further flights are cancelled due to coronavirus.
It has certainly been a tough year for the airline industry – and its investors – as the once-profitable sector continues to be one of the hardest hit by the novel coronavirus. Shares ended Wednesday marginally higher as investors remain hopeful that a COVID-19 vaccine will be the key to re-opening both domestic and international travel again. While the stock price is off of its 52-week lows of $8.25 – shares are still down over 60% from the 52-week highs of $31.67 per share.
As of September 30th the Federal Grants via the CARES Act that was helping to offset some of the burdens that the airline industry was facing throughout the ongoing pandemic. American Airlines announced their second-quarter earnings at the end of July and even with the Government aid the results were abysmal. It equated to a loss of $7.82 per share for the quarter compared to earnings of $1.82 per share the year before. Revenues were nearly 85% lower than the $12 billion the company made in the second quarter of 2019. With no end to the coronavirus at sight, a return to normalcy for the travel industry seems nearly impossible in the near future.
AAL Stock Chart
While bargain hunting investors may see the current price of AAL’s stock and wonder if it is a good entry point – there should still be some painful days ahead. The TSA recently reported that air travel was down over 75% from this time last year, generally the peak of high travel season. American Airlines has also announced that it is being forced to cancel flights for two-dozen small to medium cities around the U.S. for the foreseeable future. All of these signs point to continued uncertainty for the airlines' sector until the worst of the novel coronavirus is behind us.
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