American Airlines Group Inc has recorded a net loss of €2.18 billion for the fourth quarter of 2020 and said that 2021 will be a year of recovery.
"As we look to the year ahead, 2021 will be a year of recovery. While we don't know exactly when passenger demand will return, as vaccine distribution takes hold and travel restrictions are lifted, we will be ready," American Airlines chief executive Doug Parker said.
American Airlines' net loss of $2.18 billion, or $3.81 per share, in the fourth quarter compares with a profit of $414 million, or 95 cents per share, a year earlier. The carrier recorded an annual loss of $8.9 billion, its biggest on record.
American Airlines' shares climbed 26% to $21 a share even as the heavily leveraged airline reported large losses and faces an uncertain industry outlook. Investors said that the gains are likely fuelled by a short squeeze. American Airlines is the most heavily shorted airline stock, according to data from S3.
"The numbers clearly weren't something that would cause the stock to rise like that," said Rick Meckler, partner at Cherry Lane Investments, a family investment office in New Vernon, New Jersey. "Troubled balance sheets and high short stock positions have become the immediate target of these squeezes and they fit right into that category."
On an adjusted basis, American Airlines reported a loss of $3.86 per share. Analysts on average expected the company to lose $4.11 per share, according to Refinitiv data.
Total Operating Revenue, Liquidity And Daily Cash Burn
Total operating revenue fell to $4.03 billion from $11.31 billion but topped analysts' expectations of $3.88 billion.
American Airlines ended the fourth quarter with about $14.3 billion in available liquidity. It burned through approximately $30 million a day in the fourth quarter.
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