American Airlines aircraft line up at the gates at National Airport in February 2024. (Photo by J. David Ake)
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American Airlines lost money in every region in the third quarter but projected a current quarter profit.
The carrier reported Thursday that third quarter revenue was $13.7 billion, up 0.3% from a year earlier. Excluding items, it lost $111 million, compared with $149 million in the same quarter last year. The per share loss was 17 cents. Analysts polled by Zacks had estimated a loss of 27 cents.
Looking ahead, American said it expects a fourth quarter profit between 45 cents and 75 cents a share, with full-year adjusted earnings per share to be between 65 cents and 95 cents and full-year free cash flow more than $1 billion.
“The American Airlines team is delivering on our commitments,” said American’s CEO Robert Isom. “We’ve built a strong foundation, with best-in class cost management and a focus on strengthening the balance sheet. Looking forward, I’m confident that continued investments in our network, customer experience and loyalty program will position us well to drive revenue growth and shareholder value in 2026 and beyond.”
Overall passenger revenue per available seat mile declined 2.7%, with domestic down 1.6% while Latin declined 6.1%, Atlantic declined 3.8% and Pacific declined 6.1%.
American said year-over-year unit revenues improved sequentially throughout the quarter with September producing positive unit revenue growth. Premium unit revenue growth year over year continues to outperform the main cabin.
By the end of the year, American expects it will have fully restored its share of indirect revenue that was impacted by its former sales strategy. The carrier said “it is now shifting focus to expanding its share of indirect revenue beyond historical levels, which, combined with improved distribution capabilities, is expected to produce meaningful value for the airline.”
During the quarter, the number of loyalty accounts grew 7%, with spending on co-branded credit cards up 9%. American’s expanded partnership with Citi will start in 20206. Also, the carrier plans to open new Flagship lounges in Miami and Charlotte and to expands its Admirals Club lounge footprint at both airports.
The company ended the third quarter with $36.8 billion of total debt and $29.9 billion of net debt and an expectation to reduce total debt to less than $35 billion by the end of 2027.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tedreed/2025/10/23/american-airlines-posts-loss-but-says-this-quarter-will-be-profitable/
