AIR - Air NZ.

[BRICKS]

quote:Originally posted by duncan macgregor

quote:Originally posted by BRICKS

HAS anyone noticed AIR price is $1.60+ and DM has NONE.. [8D]

HAS anyone noticed that all has gone quiet on shifting the AIR office work to FIJI. I expect that they will now get their office work done for three bowls of rice a day when the dust settles.[:o)]macdunk

HAS anyone noticed AIR price is higher at $1.67+ and DM still again has NONE.. [8D]

[scamper]

Air is beginning to look comfortable at 170+.
This is the highest it's been in two-and-a-bit years.
The rise from ~115 in mid-Sept to 175 now must make it one of the best performers over the last three months.
It all seems a bit incredible/fabulous!
Any ideas as to its longevity? cheers, scamper.

[Placebo]

Almost high enough for Dr Cullen to sell a few to pay for my tax cut

[metro]

REL: 1257 HRS Air New Zealand Limited (NS)

MONTHLY: AIR: Air NZ Investor Update 29 (Nov Operating Stats)

AIR NEW ZEALAND INVESTOR UPDATE 29

MARKET CONDITIONS

Group capacity for the month of November 2006 increased 9.2% to 2,729 million
Available Seat Kilometres (ASKs) when compared to November 2005.

Group traffic for the month of November was 6.8% higher at 2,005 million
Revenue Passenger Kilometres (RPKs).

Group passenger load factor was down 1.7 percentage points to 73.5%.

The following sector results were recorded in the month of November:
-Short-haul passenger load factor was up 4.9 percentage points to 74.2%.
-Domestic passenger load factor was up 1.0 percentage point to 76%.
-Tasman/Pacific Islands passenger load factor increased 6.6 percentage points
to 73.3%.
-Long-haul passenger load factor decreased 6.9 percentage points to 73%.
-Asia/Japan/UK passenger load factor decreased 9.9 percentage points to 71.5%
as new services to Shanghai and London via Hong Kong went live in November.
Demand on these services through the peak season is strong and exceeding
initial expectations.
-North America/UK passenger load factor was down 4.9 percentage points to
74.2%.

Group capacity for the five months ended 30 November 2006 was 14,157 million
ASKs, a 3.3% increase over the previous period.

Year-to-date Group traffic of 10,323 million RPKs was 0.3 of a percentage
point lower than the previous comparative period. The resulting year-to-date
passenger load factor of 72.9% was down 2.7 percentage points over last year.

Year-to-date Group yields were up 12.2% over last year assisted by the
significant improvement in the Company's long-haul product and customer
service proposition. Year-to-date long and short-haul yields increased 15.2%
and 9.3% respectively.

NEW AIRCRAFT DELIVERIES

Air New Zealand's 12th Q300 aircraft went into service on 13 December and one
Saab has exited the operating fleet.

STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENT

AIR NEW ZEALAND PURCHASES FOUR MORE BOEING 787-9 AIRCRAFT

Air New Zealand has confirmed the purchase of an additional four Boeing 787-9
aircraft to meet its growth plans over the next decade.

With this order Air New Zealand has now confirmed the purchase of a total of
eight 787-9 aircraft and has secured options over eight further production
slots giving the airline access to sixteen of these new generation aircraft
over the coming decade.

Air New Zealand is the launch customer for Boeing's 787-9 aircraft, with the
first aircraft due to be introduced into service in 2011 and the last of the
eight aircraft purchased to date being delivered in 2013. As the launch
customer Air New Zealand is working closely with the Boeing design team on
the specification and development of the 787-9.

The four additional 787-9s have a list price of around NZ$1 billion but the
airline achieved a significant discount on this when it was one of the first
airlines in the world to commit to the 787 programme.

An important benefit of the 787-9 is its fuel efficiency, with a 20 percent
reduction in fuel consumption when compared with similar aircraft flying
today.

AIR NEW ZEALAND WINS PRESTIGIOUS AWARD

Air New Zealand's Business Premier service has been named by Business
Traveller Magazine as having the Best Business Class to South Pacific,
Australia, and New Zealand in 2006.

Business Traveller Magazine has been a leader in recognising excellence in
business travel for the past 18 years.

AIR NEW ZEALAND REVAMPS PACIFIC PREMIUM ECONOMY SERVICES

Following on from its decision in October to increase by eight the number of
Pacific Premium Economy seats on its 747 aircraft, Air New Zealand will
launch an enhanced Pacific Premium Economy service from Wednesday 20
December.

The re-launch means that Pacific P

[metro]

Air NZ rated a 'buy'

The Dominion Post | Monday, 8 January 2007

Air New Zealand is expected to triple its pre-tax profits over the next four years as it benefits from new planes and passenger cabins, as well as route changes.


Forsyth Barr analyst Rob Mercer has upgraded his profit forecast for the national airline to $205.5 million before interest and tax for the year to June 30, up $50.3 million.

That rises to $497 million in 2010, and compares with $148 million last year.

Even those forecasts are conservative, Mr Mercer says in a research note.

He also expects Air New Zealand to pay an 8 cent a share dividend in 2008, up from 5c.

The key profit driver is the perfectly timed fleet upgrade, which will give Air New Zealand a capital expenditure holiday for the next five years, allowing the airline to generate about $1.7 billion in free cashflow over the next five years.

As forecast net debt of $182.7 million for 2007 turns to $120.2 million cash in 2008, and exceeds $1 billion cash by 2011, shareholders can also expect special dividends in the next few years, Mr Mercer says.

Air New Zealand is about 80 per cent state-owned following a taxpayer-funded rescue in 2001.

Mr Mercer has increased his valuation for Air New Zealand shares from $1.52 to $2.20 and recommends investors buy the stock. The shares closed at $1.94 on Friday, up 2c.

"While the airline industry has a history of inadequate returns, we believe Air New Zealand is heading into a sweet spot at the right time," Mr Mercer says.

In the last year, the airline has bought new domestic and long-haul aircraft which are more fuel efficient and will need little capital expenditure and reduced maintenance costs for the next five years.

"The timing of Air New Zealand's fleet upgrade could not have been more perfect" at a time of high fuel costs, Mr Mercer says.

New, market leading lie-flat business class seats, and improved facilities in economy, as well as the introduction of premium economy, has allowed Air New Zealand to regain market share to the point where it now dominates all the routes from New Zealand to Asia, the United States and London. That has boosted revenue and yields, Mr Mercer says.

Loss-making international routes, including Singapore and Nagoya in Japan have been abandoned. The airline has also announced an 11 per cent overall capacity reduction on the Tasman next winter.


Air New Zealand and Qantas abandoned attempts for a trans-Tasman code-share agreement after its was rejected by the Australian competition regulator.

While the international capacity cuts will lower revenue, that will be more than offset by resulting cost savings, especially fuel use, Mr Mercer says.

Fuel costs have also fallen since August when the airline estimated its fuel bill could grow to $1.2 billion for the next year, up $251 million, Mr Mercer says.

Cost savings will come mainly from lower commission paid to travel agents as more passengers book direct through Air New Zealand's website.

Air New Zealand chief executive Rob Fyfe expects online bookings to exceed $1 billion this year, about a quarter of forecast revenue.

Mr Mercer says airlines globally are heading into a period of buoyant earnings growth as the ongoing delays of the 555-seat Airbus A380 creates a shortage of international seats in an expanding travel market.

The first double-decker A380 super jumbos are now not expected to fly to Australia and New Zealand till 2009, nearly two years' late.

[Steve]

No mention of the effect of any of the "no-frills" carriers gearing up on the domestic routes? I would have thought that this posibility would be negative on revenues/profits once it started

[StainlessSteelRat]

And to think they were going to go under if they didn't get their "merger" with QANTAS.

[scamper]

Owning shares in AIR has been the stupidity scale round our household since last century. Eg, getting suckered by a car/carpet salesman is about magnitude 8 on the AIR Shares Scale.
But now, it only needs to triple in value and we're back to scratch...

Some portfolio managers should be put down! however, I can say I bought another bundle at 139, so am feeling quite pleased.
Happy New Year & Good Wishes, Scamper.

[rmbbrave]

Air NZ profit set to triple in next four years

Monday January 08, 2007

Air New Zealand Boeing 787 dreamliner.
Air New Zealand is being tipped to triple its pre-tax profits in the next four years.

Forsyth Barr analyst Rob Mercer, in a research note, upgraded his profit forecast for the national airline for the year to June 30 to $205.5 million before interest and tax, up $50.3 million.

He forecast that would rise to $497 million in 2010.

Even those forecasts were conservative, Mr Mercer said.

The key profit driver was a well timed fleet upgrade, which would give Air New Zealand a capital expenditure holiday for the next five years, allowing the airline to generate about $1.7 billion in free cashflow over the next five years.

He also expected Air New Zealand to pay an 8-cent a share dividend in 2008, up from 5c.

As forecast net debt of $182.7 million for 2007 turned to $120.2 million cash in 2008, and exceeded $1 billion cash by 2011, shareholders could expect special dividends in the next few years, Mr Mercer said.

Air New Zealand is about 80 per cent state-owned following a taxpayer-funded rescue in 2001.

Mr Mercer increased his valuation for Air New Zealand shares from $1.52 to $2.20 and recommended investors buy the stock. The shares closed at $1.94 on Friday, up 2c.

- NZPA

[rmbbrave]

quote:Originally posted by scamper

Owning shares in AIR has been the stupidity scale round our household since last century. Eg, getting suckered by a car/carpet salesman is about magnitude 8 on the AIR Shares Scale.
But now, it only needs to triple in value and we're back to scratch...

Some portfolio managers should be put down! however, I can say I bought another bundle at 139, so am feeling quite pleased.
Happy New Year & Good Wishes, Scamper.

Well done Scamper,

My only purchase was at 1.43 and that was on the way down.

The SP later got down to 1.10 but I didn't sell and now I'm up 43%.