United Airlines reaches 2020 target one year ahead of schedule

• Full year 2019 diluted EPS of $11.58; full year 2019 adjusted diluted EPS of $12.05[1]
  
• Company achieves fourth consecutive quarter of pre-tax margin expansion, fifth on an adjusted basis[1]
  

Chicago, IL - United Airlines (UAL) today announced it reached its 2020 goal -- first announced in January 2018 -- to achieve adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) target2 of $11 to $13 a full year ahead of schedule. The company also achieved full year pre-tax margin growth of 2.6 points, which is expected to outpace its largest competitors for 2019.

• Reported fourth quarter net income of $641 million, diluted EPS of $2.53, up 50% versus the fourth quarter of 2018, pre-tax earnings of $844 million and pre-tax margin of 7.8 percent, expanding pre-tax margin 2.5 points versus the fourth quarter of 2018.
  
• Reported fourth quarter adjusted net income of $676 million, adjusted diluted EPS of $2.67, up 11% versus the fourth quarter of 2018, adjusted pre-tax earnings of $889 million and adjusted pre-tax margin of 8.2 percent, expanding adjusted pre-tax margin 0.5 points versus the fourth quarter of 2018.1
  
• Reported full year net income of $3.0 billion, diluted EPS of $11.58, up 51% versus full year 2018, pre-tax earnings of $3.9 billion and pre-tax margin of 9.0 percent, expanding pre-tax margin 2.6 points versus full year 2018.
  
• Reported full year adjusted net income of $3.1 billion, adjusted diluted EPS of $12.05, up 32% versus full year 2018, adjusted pre-tax earnings of $4.1 billion and adjusted pre-tax margin of 9.4 percent, expanding adjusted pre-tax margin 1.7 points versus full year 2018.1
  
• Consolidated fourth quarter passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM) increased 0.8 percent year-over-year.
  
• Consolidated fourth quarter unit cost per available seat mile (CASM) decreased 1.3 percent year-over-year and consolidated full year unit cost per available seat mile (CASM) decreased 1.2 percent year-over-year.
  
• Consolidated fourth quarter CASM, excluding special charges, third party business expenses, fuel and profit sharing, increased 2.7 percent year-over-year. Consolidated full year CASM, excluding special charges, third-party business expenses, fuel and profit sharing, increased 1.0 percent year-over-year.
  
• Repurchased $216 million of its common shares in the fourth quarter of 2019, at an average purchase price of $88.95 per share, bringing share repurchases for full year 2019 to $1.6 billion.
  

"2019 was a great year for our United team -- highlighted by achieving our $11 to $13 adjusted EPS target a full year ahead of schedule," said Oscar Munoz, CEO of United Airlines. "With a four-quarter streak of expanding profit margins, when all the results are in we expect our full year 2019 pre-tax margin growth to be the highest amongst our largest competitors. When I look at United's fundamental strength, I could not be prouder of what we've accomplished in such a short time. This is the New United we set out to build more than four years ago. As we embark on a new year and decade, I believe the outlook for United's future has never been brighter."

1 Excludes special charges, unrealized gains and losses on investments and imputed interest on certain finance leases. Reconciliations of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP measures are included in the tables accompanying this release.

2 Excludes special charges and unrealized gains and losses on investments, the nature of which are not determined at this time. Accordingly, UAL does not provide earnings guidance on a GAAP basis.