American Airlines Stock Is Losing Altitude After Hours: Here's Why

American Airlines Group Inc AAL shares are trading lower in Tuesday’s after-hours session after the company announced the departure of its executive vice president and lowered guidance for the second quarter.

What Happened: After the market close on Tuesday, American Airlines said Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer Vasu Raja will depart the company in June.

Stephen Johnson, vice chair and chief strategy officer, will assume leadership of the commercial organization, effective immediately, and help lead the search for a new chief commercial officer in addition to his current responsibilities.

In the accompanying filing with the SEC, American Airlines also slashed its second-quarter outlook ahead of a presentation at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions conference on Wednesday.

The airline lowered its adjusted earnings forecast from a range of $1.15 to $1.45 per share to a new range of $1 to $1.15 per share. The company also lowered its guidance for adjusted operating margin by 1% to a new range of approximately 8.5% to 10.5%. 

Total revenue per available seat mile (TRASM) is now expected to be down between 5% and 6% in the second quarter compared to the prior year’s quarter. American previously guided for a TRASM decline of 1% to 3%.

Cost per available seat mile excluding fuel (CASM-ex) is now expected to be flat to up 1% versus prior expectations of approximately 1% to 3%. Average fuel prices are now expected to be between $2.70 and $2.80 per gallon versus prior expectations of $2.75 to $2.95 per gallon.

American Airlines’ presentation at the Bernstein conference this week will be webcast with the link available at the company's website. The airline is likely to provide more details on its updated outlook during the event.

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AAL Price Action: American Airlines shares were down 8.04% after hours at $12.36 at the time of publication Tuesday, per Benzinga Pro.

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