Jet2 profits prepare to take off on summer holiday boom
Britain's largest package holiday operator is set to report an annual profit of £579 million when it delivers its results on Wednesday, a 9 per cent rise on the previous year.
Sales are also expected to have soared by £1 billion to £7.2 billion in the 12 months to March, according to analysts' forecasts.
The profit is slightly above the £570 million that the company predicted in a trading update in April when it flagged that demand for its summer holidays had boomed earlier in the year, with the firm increasing the number of seats on its planes by more than 8 per cent.
It provided relief to investors after its boss, Steve Heapy, warned in February that the cost-of-living crisis could hit profits as consumers cut back on getaways.
Jet2 is the largest company on the London Stock Exchange's junior AIM market, with a value of nearly £3.8 billion. Its value has surged since the pandemic, with the share price more than doubling in the past five years as it managed to emerge from the Covid-19 lockdowns less scarred than many of its competitors.
It allowed the company to leapfrog rivals such as Tui and On The Beach to become the UK's largest tour operator.
Despite initial fears that consumers would sacrifice holidays as the cost of living rose, the opposite appears to have been the case, with many households ring-fencing their getaway budgets. In its half-year results in May, On The Beach said it was expecting a record summer season as Britons prioritised spending on travel, particularly city and beach breaks to countries such as Spain.
And last month Heathrow airport increased its profit forecasts for 2025, citing better-than-expected demand for long-haul flights despite fears that turmoil in the Middle East and US President Donald Trump's tariff and border policies would put people off travelling.
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