Fly Play hf.: Massive improvement in revenues and passenger numbers accompanied by load factor increase
April 24 2024 - 11:46AM
Fly Play hf.: Massive improvement in revenues and passenger numbers
accompanied by load factor increase
- PLAY airlines revenues
increased by 66% between years, from USD 33 million in Q1 in 2023
to USD 54 million in Q1 2024 despite capacity increase of
63%.
- PLAY’s cash position was USD
17.1 million at the end of Q1. PLAY has since received USD 32
million following a share capital increase and will go into the
summer season with a healthy cash position. Uplisting to Nasdaq
Iceland Main Market is in process as planned.
- PLAY carried 349 thousand
passengers in Q1 2024, which is a 64% increase from Q1
2023.
- The load factor increased at
the same time, from 78.4% in Q1 2023 to 81.8% in Q1
2024.
- Q1 was operationally
successful with an on-time performance of 87.8%, which is a
considerably better performance than with the airline’s main
competitor.
- Earnings before interest and
taxes (EBIT) in Q1 were negative USD 20.4 million. EBIT was
negatively impacted by inaccurate news coverage of seismic
activities in the Reykjanes Peninsula.
- Total revenue per available
seat kilometer (TRASK) was 4.2 US cents, same as during Q1
2023.
- Cost per available seat
kilometer (CASK) was 5.9 US cents in Q1 2024, which is 8% less than
in Q1 2023 mainly due to favorable trends in ETS prices impacting
fuel expenses positively.
- CASK ex-fuel is down 4.2%
YoY and was 4.3 US cents.
- Yield was USD 151 driven by
strong ancillary revenue per passenger of USD 50.
Einar Örn Ólafsson, CEO
The Q1 2024 results were in line with our expectations. The
results were heavily impacted by a drop in demand following the
inaccurate global news coverage on seismic activity in the
Reykjanes Peninsula in Q4 2023. We had reported that this would
negatively affect our outcome and now the results are in.
Despite this, we saw positive signs in our operations and sales.
Demand started picking up drastically in January 2024 and we had
record sales days in Q1 which have resulted in a healthy forward
booking status. Our total revenues increased 66% between years,
from USD 33 million in Q1 2023 to USD 54 million in Q1 2024. This
is a true sign of how our airline is becoming more known and
gaining market share.
The motto at PLAY airlines is to keep costs low so we can
continue to offer competitive airfares. In Q1 we saw our CASK
decreasing 8% compared to Q1 2023 and the CASK ex-fuel also trended
in the right direction for us. Our team remains focused on keeping
our business lean.
Operationally Q1 can be very challenging in Iceland due to
weather conditions. Still, we saw an exceptional on-time
performance of 87.8%, which is above our target of 85% on-time
performance for the full year. This is something to be proud of and
I am grateful for the tremendous job my colleagues at PLAY have
done to deliver these results.
In Q1, PLAY received subscription commitments from existing
shareholders and other investors which amounted to USD 32 million.
PLAY is therefore in a strong financial position to achieve its
goals.
The truly vital summer season is ahead of us, and I am looking
forward to working with my colleagues at PLAY to deliver
exceptional service to our passengers.
Operating statistics |
|
Q1 2024 |
Q1 2023 |
Change |
Number of flights |
no. |
2,317 |
1,455 |
862 |
Number of operating destinations |
no. |
29 |
18 |
11 |
Number of aircraft in operation |
no. |
10 |
8 |
2 |
Percentage of arrivals on time (OTP) |
% |
88% |
86% |
2 ppt |
Number of passengers |
000s |
349 |
212 |
64% |
Available seat kilometers (ASK) |
mill |
1,280 |
785 |
63% |
Revenue passenger kilometers (RPK) |
mill |
1,046 |
615 |
70% |
Stage length (km) |
no. |
2,994 |
2,887 |
4% |
Load factor |
% |
82% |
78% |
3 ppt |
Seats available |
000s |
426 |
270 |
58% |
|
|
|
|
|
Income statement |
|
|
|
|
Operating revenue |
USD mill |
54.4 |
32.7 |
21.7 |
Operating expenses |
USD mill |
59.4 |
39.7 |
19.7 |
EBIT |
USD mill |
-20.4 |
-17.3 |
-3.1 |
EBIT margin |
% |
-38% |
-53% |
15 ppt |
Net operating results |
USD mill |
-21.7 |
-17.8 |
-3.9 |
|
|
|
|
|
Balance sheet |
|
|
|
|
Cash and cash equivalents (incl. restricted) |
USD mill |
17.2 |
37.6 |
-20.4 |
|
|
|
|
|
Share information |
|
|
|
|
Share price at period-end |
Per share |
4.6 |
11.5 |
-6.9 |
|
|
|
|
|
Key statistics |
|
|
|
|
Airfare per passenger |
USD |
101 |
109 |
-7% |
Ancillary per passenger |
USD |
50 |
41 |
22% |
Yield per passenger |
USD |
151 |
150 |
1% |
TRASK |
US cents |
4.2 |
4.2 |
0% |
CASK (incl. Fuel & emissions) |
US cents |
5.9 |
6.4 |
-8% |
CASK (excl. Fuel & emissions) |
US cents |
4.3 |
4.5 |
-4% |
CO₂ per RPK
(grams CO₂ per RPK) |
no. |
62 |
64 |
-3% |
CO₂ emissions in tons from jet fuel |
no. |
64,710 |
39,811 |
63% |
World-class on-time performance and new
destinations
PLAY airlines carried 349 thousand passengers in Q1 2024,
compared to 212 thousand in Q1 2023, which is a 64% increase
between years. This increase is notable because PLAY´s load factor
increased significantly between years, from 78.4% in Q1 2023 to
81.8% in Q1 2024.
Of all the passengers flying with PLAY in Q1 2024, 27% were
traveling from Iceland, 36% were going to Iceland and 37% were
connecting passengers (VIA).
Q1 was operationally successful. PLAY had an 87.8% on-time
performance in the quarter, which is beyond the airline’s full-year
target of 85%.
PLAY launched ticket sales to five new destinations in its route
network in Q1. PLAY will be starting scheduled flights to Madeira,
Marrakech, Vilnius and Split in 2024 and will do a six-week
schedule to Cardiff in the fall. Additionally, PLAY will operate
one flight to the winter wonderland of Rovaniemi in Finland in
December.
Financials
Total revenue for Q1 is USD 54 million, compared to USD 33
million last year, up 66% between years at the same time as ASK
increased 63%. Ancillary revenue increased 126% compared to Q1
2023.
Cost per available seat kilometer (CASK) decreased by nearly 8%,
from 6.4 in Q1 2023 to 5.9 in Q1 2024. Cost per available seat
kilometer excluding fuel (CASK EX-FUEL) was 4.3 in Q1 2024 compared
to 4.5 in Q1 2023.
Total revenue per available seat kilometer (TRASK) was 4.2 in Q1
2024, compared to 4.2 in Q1 in 2023.
Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) was negative USD 20.4
million in Q1 2024, compared to negative USD 17.3 million in Q1
2023. The EBIT loss in Q1 2024 was in line with PLAY´s forecast and
was heavily affected by inaccurate news coverage of seismic
activity in the Reykjanes Peninsula in Q4 2023. EBIT margin
improved by 15.4 percentage points year-on-year.
PLAY’s cash position was USD 17.1 million by the end of Q1 2024.
Additionally, PLAY received USD 32 million in Q1 from a successful
share capital increase.
Outlook
PLAY’s outlook for 2024 remains unchanged. The fleet will
consist of 10 aircraft for the full year, ex-fuel CASK is expected
to increase circa 3% annually. EBIT will be approximately zero for
the full year and cash flow will improve year-on-year.
Further Information:
PLAY is continuously developing its disclosure strategy and will
present a condensed version of the quarterly results.
CEO Einar Örn Ólafsson will present the company’s results on
Wednesday, April 24, at 4:15 p.m. (GMT). The presentation will be
streamed in English via webcast:
https://www.flyplay.com/financial-reports-and-presentations.
Financial Calendar
- Q2 2023 25 July 2024
- Q3 2023 24 October 2024
- Q4 2023 7 February 2025
- Fly Play hf. 1Q2024_Investor presentation
- Fly Play hf. Q1 2024 English