- United boosts premium travel focus and trims costs, aiming for margin gains and a rebound in unit revenue by Q4 2025.
- Full-year EPS forecast raised to $10.50 as improving demand and lower cost growth set a strong stage for 2026.
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United Airlines Holdings, Inc. UAL is charting a steady course forward with a sharpened focus on premium travel, operational efficiency, and global expansion.
Bank of America Securities analyst Andrew G. Didora reiterated the Buy rating on United Airlines Holdings, raising the price forecast from $90 to $108.
On July 16, the airline company reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.87 per share, beating analyst estimates of $3.77 per share.
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Didora highlights that United Airlines’ focus on premium travel, international routes, and loyalty programs is supporting industry-leading margins.
With encouraging signs of domestic demand recovery in early July and improved capacity trends expected in the fall, unit revenue performance is projected to rebound, nearing flat in the fourth quarter of 2025 from a 4% decline in the second quarter.
On the cost side, the analyst sees that the trends are improving, prompting a revision of estimates toward the higher end of the firm’s guidance for the third quarter and full-year 2025.
Per Didora, the second half unit cost growth is expected to remain manageable at around 2.5%, lower than the previously projected 3.5%-4.0% range.
This outlook remains positive despite the likelihood of a new flight attendant contract, which could create a 100bps cost headwind on an annualized basis.
Didora views this as a solid setup heading into 2026, where unit costs are also expected to grow by about 2.5%.
Given the company’s historical conservatism and its second-quarter earnings beating guidance despite a $0.50 disruption impact from Newark, Didora has raised expectations.
Third quarter 2025 EPS is now projected at $2.70, the higher end of the guided range of $2.25–$2.75.
The full-year 2025 EPS estimate is lifted to $10.50 from $10.00, nearing the top end of the $9–$11 outlook, while 2026 EPS is raised to $12.40 from $11.41, implying nearly 20% year-over-year growth.
Price Action: UAL shares are trading higher by 0.41% to $91.59 at last check Friday.
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