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The Independent
3 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Southwest Airlines considers adding premium class and airport lounges to compete in crowded market
Southwest Airlines is considering adding a premium class, airport lounges, and even long-haul international flights to compete in a crowded market for high-spending customers. Speaking to CNBC at an industry conference on Wednesday, CEO Bob Jordan said nothing was off the table. 'Whatever customers need in 2025, 2030, we won't take any of that off the table. We'll do it the Southwest way, but we're not going to say 'We would never do that,'' Jordan said. 'We know we send customers to other airlines because there's some things you might want that you can't get on us. That includes things like lounges, like true premium, like flying long-haul international.' Southwest, founded in 1967 and headquartered in Dallas, is the fourth-largest airline in North America by passengers carried. It now finds itself in the midst of a transformation. In addition to an increasingly competitive market, this reinvention was partly sparked by a disastrous holiday meltdown in December 2022, which resulted in severe delays and thousands of cancellations. The U.S. Department of Transportation fined the airline a record $140 million. Southwest's business model, characterized by high productivity from both aircraft and employees, along with quick turnaround times, has influenced other carriers worldwide, including WestJet in Canada, as well as Ryanair and EasyJet in Europe. However, in a changing marketplace, it faces increased pressure from competitors, with an activist investor — Elliott Investment Management — pushing the airline to increase revenue, just as fares in the U.S. are falling, amid economic uncertainty. Long-standing policies that distinguished it from many competitors have been dropped: open seating, a uniform cabin experience, and allowing all customers to check two bags for free. Just last month, major changes were introduced that have long been offered by competitor airlines, including no-frills basic economy tickets and baggage fees. Assigned seating will start in early 2026. Jordan said these changes have not led to customer defections to rivals, and there is more to come, with the next focus being to make changes for higher-end travel. The three largest airlines in the U.S. — Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines — have been adding more luxury tourism destinations, roomier (and therefore more expensive) seats, and have heavily invested in upgrading their airport lounges, which are seen by many customers as an important part of the travel experience. American unveiled plans to almost double its lounge space at its Latin America hub at Miami International Airport. While Jordan admits it is 'way too soon to put any specifics' on potential changes, he did drop some big hints. One of Southwest's strongest markets is at Nashville International Airport, where it holds a market share of more than 50 percent. 'Nashville loves us, and we know we have Nashville customers that want lounges. They want first class. They want to get to Europe, and they're going to Europe,' Jordan said. Currently, if Southwest passengers want those things, they have to book on another airline, and that also makes them more likely to take out a competitor's co-branded credit card, he noted. 'I want to send fewer and fewer customers to another airline,' he said. It's too early to say whether Southwest will make the shift to buying longer-haul aircraft, which it would need to serve destinations like Europe, Jordan said — the airline has relied on the Boeing 737 for more than half a century. As a stepping stone to that goal, Southwest has been forging international partnerships, so far with Icelandair and China Airlines. However, Jordan said that a Southwest plane landing in Europe at some point is on the table. 'No commitment, but you can certainly see a day when we are as Southwest Airlines serving long-haul destinations like Europe,' he said. 'Obviously, you would need a different aircraft to serve that mission, and we're open to looking at what it would take to serve that mission.'
Japan Times
09-06-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Elliott calls for Sumitomo Realty improvements in rare letter
Elliott Investment Management is calling for Sumitomo Realty & Development to improve shareholder returns and corporate governance, saying the Japanese real estate developer's stock is worth 40% more than its current value. The New York-based investment firm released a public letter Monday, saying it would vote against Tokyo-based Sumitomo Realty's senior management at the upcoming annual shareholders meeting if there's no meaningful progress made on improving its value. The letter is a rare public move by Elliott, which has kept quiet on most of its Japan investments. In the past year, news reports have unveiled the firm's activist engagement with companies like Tokyo Gas, Mitsui Fudosan and SoftBank Group. Elliott's stake in Sumitomo Realty was first reported in March. Shares of Sumitomo Realty fell 0.6% to ¥5,468 on Monday morning in Tokyo. The stock has gained about 11% this year. A Sumitomo Realty representative wasn't immediately able to comment. Elliott said Sumitomo Realty is one of the most undervalued real estate developers in Japan, assessing that its stock is worth at least ¥8,000, based on the valuation of its real estate holdings and peer companies. It called on the company to unwind its cross-shareholdings in companies such as Taisei and Obayashi, increase its shareholder payout ratio to 50% or more and set a return-on-equity target of at least 10%. Elliott owned a 2.99% stake in Sumitomo Realty at the end of March, according to public filings from the company. In the letter, the investment fund said it has built up a more than 3% holding. In Japan, shareholders who have held 3% of a company for more than six months can call a special meeting. Most of Elliott's Japan investments have focused on boosting returns through share buybacks, selling off older real estate holdings and unwinding equity stakes in other companies. Sumitomo Realty's annual shareholder meeting is scheduled for June 27.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Phillips 66 (PSX) Suffered From An Overreaction After Elliot Victory, Says Jim Cramer
We recently published a list of . In this article, we are going to take a look at where Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) stands against other stocks that Jim Cramer discusses. Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) is a diversified American oil and gas company. The firm operates in the chemicals, oil refining, storage, and transportation industries. It made its way to Cramer's morning appearance as activist Elliott Investment managed to secure two seats on the firm's board. Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX)'s shares dropped by 7.5% on the news as investors weighed whether Elliott's demands of business unit spinoffs would generate uncertainty for the firm's future cash flows. For his part, Cramer attributed the fall to an overreaction: '[On share price movement after activist investor Elliott won two board seats] Yeah that's a reaction. I think there are people who felt that there could be an immediate transaction or something which was never the case. I think that's an overreaction. Not a great group right now but it's an overreaction.' A refinery manager walking through an array of pipes and pumping systems, recognizing the company's vast refining power. Cramer has discussed Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) several times this year. For instance, in May he remarked that the firm was being unfairly treated as an oil company while it was a refiner instead. In January, he praised Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX)'s business acumen after the firm bought NGL assets for $2.2 billion. Here's what Cramer said: 'And listen, that's not even an exhaustive list of M&A activity this week. Well, on Monday, Phillips 66 announced a deal to acquire certain privately held natural gas infrastructure assets for over $2 billion… Looking at the transactions we've seen just this week, while some of them likely would've been challenged by Biden's ideologically driven regulators, most of them seem pretty justifiable. All of them make great business sense…' Overall, PSX ranks 10th on our list of stocks that Jim Cramer discusses. While we acknowledge the potential of PSX, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than PSX and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Phillips 66 (PSX) Suffered From An Overreaction After Elliot Victory, Says Jim Cramer
We recently published a list of . In this article, we are going to take a look at where Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) stands against other stocks that Jim Cramer discusses. Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) is a diversified American oil and gas company. The firm operates in the chemicals, oil refining, storage, and transportation industries. It made its way to Cramer's morning appearance as activist Elliott Investment managed to secure two seats on the firm's board. Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX)'s shares dropped by 7.5% on the news as investors weighed whether Elliott's demands of business unit spinoffs would generate uncertainty for the firm's future cash flows. For his part, Cramer attributed the fall to an overreaction: '[On share price movement after activist investor Elliott won two board seats] Yeah that's a reaction. I think there are people who felt that there could be an immediate transaction or something which was never the case. I think that's an overreaction. Not a great group right now but it's an overreaction.' A refinery manager walking through an array of pipes and pumping systems, recognizing the company's vast refining power. Cramer has discussed Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) several times this year. For instance, in May he remarked that the firm was being unfairly treated as an oil company while it was a refiner instead. In January, he praised Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX)'s business acumen after the firm bought NGL assets for $2.2 billion. Here's what Cramer said: 'And listen, that's not even an exhaustive list of M&A activity this week. Well, on Monday, Phillips 66 announced a deal to acquire certain privately held natural gas infrastructure assets for over $2 billion… Looking at the transactions we've seen just this week, while some of them likely would've been challenged by Biden's ideologically driven regulators, most of them seem pretty justifiable. All of them make great business sense…' Overall, PSX ranks 10th on our list of stocks that Jim Cramer discusses. While we acknowledge the potential of PSX, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than PSX and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock. READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
Wall Street Journal
28-05-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Elliott Eyes Bet on Pipeline Carrying Russian Gas
Elliott Investment Management is in talks to buy a stake in a package of infrastructure assets, including a pipeline that carries Russian natural gas to Europe—a deal that could form a template for reviving Moscow's once-mighty energy business by involving American investors. The U.S. hedge fund, headed by billionaire founder Paul Singer, is considering a stake in the Bulgarian extension of the TurkStream pipeline, along with access to a network of data centers, data cables and other infrastructure assets, according to people familiar with the matter.
