As reported by Globes, Israeli flag carrier, El Al (LY), has achieved a profit increase of 370% in Q4 2023.
This article will cover the details surrounding El Al’s hefty profit increase during Q4 2023 and their full-year 2023.
El Al’s Q4 Profit Increase
Since the war in Gaza began, many foreign carrier’s had halted their routes to Tel Aviv, meaning El Al had been able to seize most of the market share.
For Q4 alone, the Israeli operator had an 80% market share, whereas in Q3 they only had a 22% share.
At the beginning of the war, the Israeli carrier had reported that it might take a financial hit, however, it has turned out to be the complete opposite.
In terms of fleet size, El Al operates a current fleet of 47 aircraft, broken down as, 17 Boeing 737-800s, eight Boeing 737-900ERs, six Boeing 777-200s, four Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner’s, and 12 787-9 Dreamliner’s.
Profits Breakdown
Taking a dive into the carrier’s profits, during Q4 2023, the airline had recorded a net profit of $39.7 million, a massive 370% increase when compared to the same period in 2022.
In terms of revenue for Q4 2023, the airline had landed at $677.8 million, a 21% increase from Q4 2022, and an operating profit of $161 million, a 58% increase from Q4 2022.
In terms of the full-year (FY) 2023, El Al had reported a net profit of $117 million, an increase of $8 million from 2022’s $109 million.
El Al Comments & Future
A spokesperson for the airline has commented on their profit increase, saying, “Following the halting of flights by foreign companies and the company’s ability to implement the required adjustments, the company has had stronger demand for its flights than previously estimated, which has positively influenced, together with other factors, the business results for the fourth quarter of 2023. This trend is also continuing in the first quarter of 2024.”
However, the future for El Al may be different as more and more foreign operators begin to resume their services to Israel.
Since the war began, the airlines’ share price doubled, however, in mid-February, U.S. operator United Airlines (UA) announced the resumption of Tel Aviv from the start of March. This saw El Al’s share price drop by 14% on the day of the announcement.
Looking back into the past prior to the war, these are the following market shares that each major operator to Israel held which are set to resume services in March –
- Turkish Airlines & Pegasus – 9%
- Wizz Air – 10%
- United – 2.6%
- easyJet – 3%
- Air India – 0.3%
This will certainly hinder El Al’s market share, but the Israeli operator should still see some profits, but maybe not to the same level saw in Q4 2023.
The reason why we believe El Al should see some profits is helped by the fact that the carrier is doing a campaign whereby they are distributing 18,000 tickets to army conscripts and reservists to help with their passenger numbers.
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