Southwest Airlines (LUV) has reported a $220 million U.S. loss for the fourth quarter of 2022 following a meltdown during the busy holiday travel season that cost the company millions in revenue.
Dallas, Texas-based Southwest reported a loss per share of $0.38 U.S. versus an expected loss of $0.12 U.S. that was expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv data. Revenue in Q4 amounted to $6.17 billion U.S. versus $6.16 billion U.S. that was forecast.
Southwest canceled 16,700 flights between December 21 and December 31 after severe winter weather swept through much of the U.S.
Other airlines quickly recovered from the winter weather, but Southwest’s technology was unable to process all the flight changes and crews had to call the carrier to get rescheduled.
In recent weeks, the carrier has been processing tens of thousands of refunds and reimbursements for travelers who booked flights on competing airlines to get to their destinations.
The airline said the mass cancellations in December hit its pre-tax results by $800 million U.S., which was in line with earlier estimates.
Looking ahead, Southwest forecast another loss for the current first quarter while analysts had been anticipating a profit of $0.19 U.S. per share for Q1.
Southwest’s stock has declined 16% over the last 12 months to $36.87 U.S. per share.