The budget airline has hit strong headwinds, which will take a few years to disperse, but it’s well placed to take advantage of weakness in the sector
So much for the idea that easyJet could improve its profits every year. Those investors who enjoyed the shares’ splendid run from 300p in 2011 to £18 in 2015 have discovered that volatility has not been abolished in the airline game. EasyJet says its profits will fall 28% in the financial year that closed last month. Its shares have almost halved in value in 12 months and now stand at 933p, down 7% on Thursday.
The vote for Brexit is merely the lesser of two upsets. A weak sterling has been unhelpful to the tune of £90m for a company that flies over so much eurozone airspace and pays so many landing charges in euros. The greater impact has come from disruption, strikes by air-traffic controllers and the effects of terrorist attacks in Nice, Paris and Brussels.