After finishing 2012 with a strong December, airline stocks went on a tear in the first quarter of 2013. Of the five largest U.S. carriers (excluding American Airlines, which is in bankruptcy), the worst performer was JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ:JBLU), which still gained a solid 17% for the quarter, outperforming the S&P 500 by nearly 10%.
Airline Q1 2013 Stock Performance vs. S&P 500, data by YCharts
However, in the past week, airline stocks have been buffeted by one piece of bad news after another. In just three days, a number of airline stocks have lost 10% or more of their value.
Airline 1 Week Stock Performance vs. S&P 500, data by YCharts
This quick reversal implies that we have probably reached the end of the airline rally. However, that does not mean that long-term investors should necessarily avoid the sector altogether. If you pick your spots carefully, you should still be able to earn some nice returns in airline stocks.
The rally
Last quarter’s massive airline rally was primarily driven by speculation about a potential merger between American Airlines and US Airways Group, Inc. (NYSE:LCC), followed by enthusiasm about the potential benefits for the industry, after the merger agreement was announced. Moderating oil prices also helped give airline stocks a boost. It seemed to me that the merger’s potential benefits were already priced in by the time the agreement was announced in mid-February, but investors continued to push airline stocks higher. Most notably, Jim Cramer came out as bullish on US Airways in early March, reversing a long-held aversion to airline stocks.
The main rationale for buying airline stocks based on the American-US Airways merger was the idea that consolidation would lead to capacity discipline, boosting pricing power. Continued unit revenue gains at the major airlines in January and February added to this hope. However, consolidation is not particularly new for the airline industry. In the past five years, Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) merged with Northwest, United and Continental merged to form United Continental Holdings Inc (NYSE:UAL), and Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) purchased AirTran. Most of the benefits of tamer — not to mention saner — competition have already been achieved.
The reality check
In the past week, airline investors have faced a major reality check. First, United Continental published an investor update before the long weekend in which it announced that non-fuel unit costs would increase by 11.4%-12.4% in the first quarter, far worse than its original projection of an 8%-9% increase. As a result, various analysts cut their Q1 estimates for United, anticipating an even larger loss than previously expected. Nevertheless, analysts were encouraged to see that United expects unit revenue to increase 5.4%-6.4% for the full quarter (implying a gain of roughly 7% in March).
However, if United Continental Holdings Inc (NYSE:UAL)’s report led investors to believe that the revenue environment is strong, Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) and US Airways Group, Inc. (NYSE:LCC) proceeded to dump cold water on that notion. On Tuesday, Delta reported unit revenue growth of just 2% in March, which missed the company’s previous guidance and analyst expectations. Delta blamed the shortfall on lower demand for last-minute tickets caused by the sequester, along with some pricing missteps. On Wednesday, US Airways reported unit revenue that was flat year over year, which also missing its own guidance and analyst expectations. Like Delta, US Airways Group, Inc. (NYSE:LCC) blamed its revenue shortfall on lower last-minute bookings caused by the sequester.
