SkyWest, Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Annual 2024 Profit

Fourth Quarter and Annual 2024 Summary

• Q4 2024 pre-tax income of $134 million, net income of $97 million, or $2.34 per diluted share
• Full year 2024 pre-tax income of $432 million, net income of $323 million, or $7.77 per diluted share
• SkyWest reached a multi-year contract extension with American Airlines that allows for a total of 74 CRJ700s under agreement
• SkyWest took delivery of four new E175 aircraft under a previously announced agreement with United

SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ: SKYW) (“SkyWest”) today reported financial and operating results for Q4 2024, including net income of $97 million, or $2.34 per diluted share, compared to net income of $18 million, or $0.42 per diluted share, for Q4 2023. SkyWest also reported net income of $323 million, or $7.77 per diluted share, for the 2024 year, compared to net income of $34 million, or $0.77 per diluted share, for the 2023 year.

Commenting on the results, Chip Childs, Chief Executive Officer of SkyWest, said, “We are honored to be named one of the World’s Most Admired™ Companies for 2025 by Fortune Magazine and pleased that our operational momentum continues. We are continuing to make improvements in returning daily scheduled service to smaller communities, increasing the utilization and efficiency of all fleet types, and quickly placing new aircraft deliveries into service. I want to thank the SkyWest team for their exceptional teamwork as we continue to execute on these growth opportunities, including progress with expanding our CRJ550 and E175 fleets.”

Financial Results

Revenue was $944 million in Q4 2024, up $192 million, or 26%, from $752 million in Q4 2023. SkyWest’s block hour production increased 20% in Q4 2024 compared to Q4 2023, which reflects improvements in captain availability since Q4 2023.

For purposes of revenue comparability year-over-year, SkyWest recognized $20 million of previously deferred revenue under its flying contracts during Q4 2024, compared to deferring $63 million of revenue during Q4 2023. As of December 31, 2024, SkyWest had cumulative deferred revenue of $322 million under its flying contracts on its balance sheet.

Operating expenses were $800 million in Q4 2024, up $76 million, or 10%, from $724 million in Q4 2023, driven by the increase in flight production year-over-year.

Capital and Liquidity

SkyWest had $802 million in cash and marketable securities at December 31, 2024, down from $836 million at September 30, 2024 and down from $835 million at December 31, 2023.

Total debt at December 31, 2024 was $2.7 billion, flat from September 30, 2024 and down from $3.0 billion at December 31, 2023. Capital expenditures during Q4 2024 were $186 million for the purchase of four debt-financed E175 aircraft, spare engines and other fixed assets.

Under its previously announced share repurchase program authorized by the SkyWest Board of Directors in May 2023, SkyWest repurchased 47,000 shares of common stock for $4.9 million during Q4 2024 at an average price per share of $104.51. As of December 31, 2024, SkyWest had $48 million of remaining availability under its current share repurchase program.

Commercial Agreements

SkyWest is coordinating with its major airline partners to optimize the timing of upcoming announced fleet deliveries. The table below summarizes E175 aircraft deliveries SkyWest received during 2024 and anticipated future deliveries during the periods indicated based on currently available information, which is subject to change.

 

 

Completed

 

Anticipated

 

 

 

 

2024

 

2025

 

2026

 

Total

Delta Air Lines

 

1

 

ꟷ

 

ꟷ

 

1

United Airlines

 

24(1)

 

7

 

8

 

39

Alaska Airlines

 

ꟷ

 

1

 

ꟷ

 

1

Total

 

25

 

8

 

8

 

41

(1) 20 of the 24 E175 deliveries completed in 2024 for United Airlines were partner-financed aircraft.

By the end of 2026, SkyWest is scheduled to operate a total of 278 E175 aircraft.

About SkyWest

SkyWest, Inc. is the holding company for SkyWest Airlines, SkyWest Charter (“SWC”) and SkyWest Leasing, an aircraft leasing company. SkyWest Airlines has a fleet of approximately 500 aircraft connecting passengers to over 240 destinations throughout North America. SkyWest Airlines operates through partnerships with United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and Alaska Airlines carrying more than 42 million passengers in 2024.

SkyWest will host its conference call to discuss its fourth quarter 2024 results today, January 30, 2025, at 2:30 p.m. Mountain Time. The conference call number is 1-888-330-2455 for domestic callers, and 1-240-789-2717 for international callers. Please call up to ten minutes in advance to ensure you are connected prior to the start of the call. The conference call will also be available live on the Internet at https://events.q4inc.com/attendee/312398142. This press release and additional information regarding SkyWest, including access information for the digital rebroadcast of the fourth quarter 2024 results call, participation at investor conferences and investor presentations can be accessed at inc.skywest.com.

Forward Looking-Statements

In addition to historical information, this release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “forecasts,” "expects," "intends," "believes," "anticipates," “estimates,” "should," "likely" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. Such statements include, but are not limited to, statements about the continued demand for our product, the effect of economic conditions on SkyWest’s business, financial condition and results of operations, the scheduled aircraft deliveries, fleet expansion and anticipated fleet size for SkyWest in upcoming periods, expected production levels in future periods and associated staffing challenges, pilot attrition trends, SkyWest’s coordination with major airline partners to optimize the delivery of aircraft under previously announced agreements and quickly placing new aircraft deliveries into service, the expected terms, timing and benefits related to SkyWest’s leasing, strategic partnership and joint venture transactions, scheduled flight service to smaller communities, increasing the utilization and efficiency of all fleet types as well as SkyWest’s future financial and operating results, plans, objectives, expectations, estimates, intentions and outlook, and other statements that are not historical facts. All forward-looking statements included in this release are made as of the date hereof and are based on information available to SkyWest as of such date. SkyWest assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements unless required by law. Readers should note that many factors could affect the future operating and financial results of SkyWest and could cause actual results to vary materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements set forth in this release. These factors include, but are not limited to: the challenges of competing successfully in a highly competitive and rapidly changing industry; developments associated with fluctuations in the economy and the demand for air travel, including related to inflationary pressures, and related decreases in customer demand and spending; uncertainty regarding potential future outbreaks of infectious diseases or other health concerns, and the consequences of such outbreaks to the travel industry, including travel demand and travel behavior, and our major airline partners in general and the financial condition and operating results of SkyWest in particular; the prospects of entering into agreements with existing or other carriers to fly new aircraft; uncertainty regarding timing and performance of key third-party service providers; ongoing negotiations between SkyWest and its major airline partners regarding their contractual obligations; uncertainties regarding operation of new aircraft; the ability to attract and retain qualified pilots, including captains, and related staffing challenges; the impact of regulatory issues such as pilot rest rules and qualification requirements; the ability to obtain aircraft financing; the financial stability of SkyWest’s major airline partners and any potential impact of their financial condition on the operations of SkyWest; fluctuations in flight schedules, which are determined by the major airline partners for whom SkyWest conducts flight operations; variations in market and economic conditions; significant aircraft lease and debt commitments; estimated useful life of long-lived assets, residual aircraft values and related impairment charges; labor relations and costs; the impact of global instability; rapidly fluctuating fuel costs and potential fuel shortages; the impact of weather-related, natural disasters and other air safety incidents on air travel and airline costs; aircraft deliveries; uncertainty regarding ongoing hostility between Russia and the Ukraine, as well as Israel and Hamas, and the related impacts on macroeconomic conditions and on the international operations of any of our major airline partners as a result of such conflict; and other unanticipated factors. Risk factors, cautionary statements and other conditions which could cause SkyWest’s actual results to differ materially from management’s current expectations are contained in SkyWest’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K.

SkyWest, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income

(Dollars and Shares in Thousands, Except per Share Amounts)

(Unaudited)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three Months Ended

 

Year Ended

 

 

December 31,

 

December 31,

 

 

2024

 

2023

 

2024

 

2023

OPERATING REVENUES:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flying agreements

 

$

912,845

 

 

$

728,267

 

 

$

3,412,798

 

 

$

2,834,397

 

Lease, airport services and other

 

 

31,557

 

 

 

23,520

 

 

 

115,122

 

 

 

101,035

 

Total operating revenues

 

 

944,402

 

 

 

751,787

 

 

 

3,527,920

 

 

 

2,935,432

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OPERATING EXPENSES:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Salaries, wages and benefits

 

 

380,493

 

 

 

331,956

 

 

 

1,463,932

 

 

 

1,322,615

 

Aircraft maintenance, materials and repairs

 

 

202,308

 

 

 

190,271

 

 

 

712,642

 

 

 

673,453

 

Depreciation and amortization

 

 

94,534

 

 

 

95,237

 

 

 

383,880

 

 

 

383,115

 

Aircraft fuel

 

 

22,193

 

 

 

23,340

 

 

 

87,409

 

 

 

85,913

 

Airport-related expenses

 

 

24,771

 

 

 

18,992

 

 

 

85,836

 

 

 

72,640

 

Aircraft rentals

 

 

1,332

 

 

 

1,452

 

 

 

5,257

 

 

 

25,507

 

Other operating expenses

 

 

74,695

 

 

 

62,917

 

 

 

294,307

 

 

 

268,120

 

Total operating expenses

 

 

800,326

 

 

 

724,165

 

 

 

3,033,263

 

 

 

2,831,363

 

OPERATING INCOME

 

 

144,076

 

 

 

27,622

 

 

 

494,657

 

 

 

104,069

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interest income

 

 

11,835

 

 

 

12,167

 

 

 

47,961

 

 

 

43,928

 

Interest expense

 

 

(27,737

)

 

 

(31,049

)

 

 

(114,340

)

 

 

(130,930

)

Other income, net

 

 

5,432

 

 

 

15,698

 

 

 

3,865

 

 

 

23,242

 

Total other expense, net

 

 

(10,470

)

 

 

(3,184

)

 

 

(62,514

)

 

 

(63,760

)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES

 

 

133,606

 

 

 

24,438

 

 

 

432,143

 

 

 

40,309

 

PROVISION FOR INCOME TAXES

 

 

36,229

 

 

 

6,922

 

 

 

109,181

 

 

 

5,967

 

NET INCOME

 

$

97,377

 

 

$

17,516

 

 

$

322,962

 

 

$

34,342

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BASIC EARNINGS PER SHARE

 

$

2.42

 

 

$

0.43

 

 

$

8.02

 

 

$

0.78

 

DILUTED EARNINGS PER SHARE

 

$

2.34

 

 

$

0.42

 

 

$

7.77

 

 

$

0.77

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weighted average common shares:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Basic

 

 

40,317

 

 

 

40,706

 

 

 

40,262

 

 

 

43,940

 

Diluted

 

 

41,702

 

 

 

41,776

 

 

 

41,547

 

 

 

44,599

 

SkyWest, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Summary of Consolidated Balance Sheets

(Dollars in Thousands)

(Unaudited)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

December 31,

 

December 31,

 

2024

 

2023

Cash and marketable securities

$

801,628

 

$

835,223

Other current assets

 

315,439

 

 

296,673

Total current assets

 

1,117,067

 

 

1,131,896

 

 

 

 

 

 

Property and equipment, net

 

5,521,796

 

 

5,405,685

Deposits on aircraft

 

65,612

 

 

77,282

Other long-term assets

 

435,392

 

 

411,430

Total assets

$

7,139,867

 

$

7,026,293

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current portion, long-term debt

$

535,589

 

$

443,869

Other current liabilities

 

894,002

 

 

810,423

Total current liabilities

 

1,429,591

 

 

1,254,292

 

 

 

 

 

 

Long-term debt, net of current maturities

 

2,136,786

 

 

2,562,183

Other long-term liabilities

 

1,164,709

 

 

1,096,316

Stockholders' equity

 

2,408,781

 

 

2,113,502

Total liabilities and stockholders' equity

$

7,139,867

 

$

7,026,293

SkyWest, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Additional Operational Information (unaudited)

 

SkyWest’s fleet in scheduled service or under contract by aircraft type:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

December 31, 2024

 

September 30, 2024

 

December 31, 2023

E175 aircraft

 

262

 

258

 

237

CRJ900 aircraft

 

36

 

36

 

41

CRJ700 aircraft (1)

 

119

 

109

 

118

CRJ200 aircraft

 

75

 

81

 

89

Total aircraft in service or under contract

 

492

 

484

 

485

________________ (1) Includes CRJ550 aircraft, a 50-seat configuration of the CRJ700 aircraft.

As of December 31, 2024, SkyWest leased 35 CRJ700/CRJ550s and five CRJ900s to third parties and had 18 CRJ200s that are configured for service under SWC operations (these aircraft are excluded from the table above).

Selected operational data:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the three months ended December 31,

 

For the year ended December 31,

Block hours by aircraft type:

 

2024

 

 

2023

 

 

% Change

 

2024

 

 

2023

 

 

% Change

E175s

 

211,519

 

 

177,104

 

 

19.4

 

%

 

792,318

 

 

677,886

 

 

16.9

 

%

CRJ900s

 

23,711

 

 

17,198

 

 

37.9

 

%

 

84,883

 

 

76,588

 

 

10.8

 

%

CRJ700s

 

68,506

 

 

59,820

 

 

14.5

 

%

 

244,909

 

 

218,059

 

 

12.3

 

%

CRJ200s

 

46,582

 

 

36,632

 

 

27.2

 

%

 

169,930

 

 

167,910

 

 

1.2

 

%

Total block hours

 

350,318

 

 

290,754

 

 

20.5

 

%

 

1,292,040

 

 

1,140,443

 

 

13.3

 

%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Departures

 

206,588

 

 

177,433

 

 

16.4

 

%

 

766,742

 

 

691,962

 

 

10.8

 

%

Passengers carried

 

11,231,510

 

 

9,925,655

 

 

13.2

 

%

 

42,335,302

 

 

38,597,309

 

 

9.7

 

%

Adjusted flight completion

 

99.9

%

 

99.9

%

 

—

 

pts

 

99.9

%

 

99.9

%

 

—

 

pts

Raw flight completion

 

99.0

%

 

99.5

%

 

(0.5

)

pts

 

98.9

%

 

98.8

%

 

0.1

 

pts

Passenger load factor

 

82.2

%

 

83.4

%

 

(1.2

)

pts

 

82.8

%

 

83.6

%

 

(0.8

)

pts

Average trip length

 

443

 

 

445

 

 

(0.4

)

%

 

464

 

 

453

 

 

2.4

 

%

Adjusted flight completion percent excludes weather cancellations. Raw flight completion includes weather cancellations.

 

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