Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. $(LUV)$ rose 2.4% in premarket trading Monday, after the air carrier indicated that March operating revenue has been better than expected, while fuel costs are expected to be higher and cash burn is less.
The company said that while it continues to experience significant negative effects from the COVID-19 pandemic, operating revenue for March is now expected to be down 15% to 20% from a year ago, compared with a previous estimate of down 20% to 30%. Capacity is expected to be down 14% versus previous expectations of down 15%, as load factor is now estimated at 65% to 70% compared with previous estimates of down 60% to 70%.
The company affirmed its guidance of first-quarter capacity to decrease about 35%. Separately, the company raised its estimate for first-quarter fuel costs to $1.65 to $1.75 a gallon from $1.60 to $1.70, while lowering its cash burn estimate to an $14 million per day from $15 million per day.
The company said it recently received the remaining extended payroll support proceeds of about $864 million from the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021.
The stock has run up 31.5% over the past three months through Friday, while the U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS) has advanced 20.1% and the S&P 500 has gained 6.7%.
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