Earnings Preview: JetBlue Airways Corp.

JetBlue Airways Corporation (JBLU) is expected to report Q2 earnings before market open Tuesday, July 22 with a conference call scheduled for 10:00 am ET.

Guidance

Analysts are looking for EPS of (7c) on revenue of $856.03M. The consensus range is (10c) to (4c) for EPS, and $837.52M to $878.2M for revenue, according to First Call.

When JetBlue reported its Q1 earnings it gave guidance expecting Q2 operating margin of 1% to 3% on $3.09/gallon fuel cost and FY08 operating margin of 2% to 4% on $3.05/gallon fuel cost. The airline announced on May 28, that it would defer the delivery of 21 Airbus A320 aircraft. The aircraft will now be delivered between 2014 and 2015. The company had originally planned to receive the aircraft between 2009 and 2011.

Analyst Views

In May, Lehman Brothers said of the entire airline sector that it believes higher fuel costs can be offset by capacity reductions and fresh capital. The firm does not view current valuations as compelling and lowered estimates for the group. Morgan Stanley, conversely, upgraded shares of JetBlue to Equal Weight from Underweight on June 17.

Investors will be interested to see how the slowing U.S. economy and rising fuel cost have effected JetBlue's Q2 earnings.

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