Qantas Airways has posted its second-highest earnings on record, sending its shares to an all-time high, as the airline added new international routes and benefited from strong travel demand.
Net income jumped 28 per cent to $1.61 billion in the year to June 30, the airline’s highest profit since its record result in 2023, helped by fleet renewal and efficiency reforms. Underlying earnings reached $2.39 billion, the carrier said on Thursday morning, largely in line with analyst forecasts.
The airline declared a final dividend of 16.5¢ a share and said it would also pay shareholders a special dividend of 9.9¢. Its shares soared, jumping 11.4 per cent to $12.38 in early trade, a new intraday record, as investors cheered the bumper profit and payout.
Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson delivered a 28 per cent jump in full-year profit..Credit: Bloomberg
“Continued strong demand across all market segments, combined with our dual brand strategy, helped the group grow earnings,” said chief executive Vanessa Hudson, highlighting that Qantas and its offshoot, Jetstar, carried four million more passengers during the year.
Qantas said it expects “ongoing strong travel demand” during the six months to the end of December, with domestic revenues forecast to rise between 3 and 5 per cent and international sales seen increasing by 2 to 3 per cent during the half.
The company is in its second year of a turnaround engineered by Hudson, who took over from her controversial predecessor, Alan Joyce. Under her stewardship, the airline has sought to rebuild its public image, smooth over industrial relations disputes and update its existing domestic fleet, both through new planes and new interiors.
Seeking to boost returns, Qantas also shuttered its Singapore-based low-cost carrier Jetstar Asia in late July as rising costs and increased competition on its routes eroded the regional airline’s profits. The planes were redeployed back into its Australian fleet. Jetstar Asia ceased operations on July 31, incurring an underlying loss of $33 million and $39 million in costs associated with the closure.
However, there has been turbulence during Hudson’s time as well.
In July, Qantas disclosed that 5.7 million customer records had been hacked through a third-party vendor at a call centre in the Philippines. Successive disclosures alarmed the public — including the top-tier loyalty club lounge — even as the airline moved swiftly to address the breach.
