Why Spirit Airlines Shares Are Flying Higher After Hours

Spirit Airlines Inc SAVE shares are trading higher in Monday's after-hours session after the company reported better-than-expected financial results.

What Happened: Spirit Airlines said fourth-quarter revenue totaled $1.39 billion, which was up 43.5% from 2019 (pre-pandemic) levels, primarily driven by increased flight volumes and stronger operating yields. The company's top-line results beat average analyst estimates of $1.38 billion, according to Benzinga Pro.

The airline company reported quarterly adjusted earnings of 12 cents per share, which beat consensus estimates of 4 cents per share. 

"Leisure demand has remained strong and our team is doing a great job maximizing revenue production. In the fourth quarter 2022, despite a significant number of weather-related flight cancellations during the peak holiday period, our team delivered better-than-expected unit revenue performance," said Ted Christie, president and CEO of Spirit Airlines.

Spirit said it faced unexpected setbacks during the quarter, including Geared Turbo Fan engine availability issues and stressed industry infrastructure. Despite the setbacks, the company said it has been steadily building towards full fleet utilization and is on track to be close to full fleet utilization by the end of 2023.

Spirit expects full-year 2023 capacity to be up 19% to 22% compared to 2022. 

Spirit ended the quarter with cash and equivalents of $1.8 billion. The company's cash position also includes short-term investment securities and liquidity available under the company's revolving credit facility.

See Also: Why Skyworks Stock Is Surging After Hours

SAVE Price Action: Spirit has a 52-week high of $28.30 and a 52-week low of $15.92.

Spirit shares are up 3.57% in after hours at $20.30 at the time of writing, according to Benzinga Pro.

Photo: courtesy of Spirit Airlines.