Alaska Air Reports Solid Q2 Results and Accelerates Its Merger Integration

Alaska Air Reports Solid Q2 Results and Accelerates Its Merger Integration

Alaska Air (NYSE: ALK) faced some major challenges in the first half of 2017. The company's recent acquisition of Virgin America has given it a big presence in overcrowded airports such as those in San Francisco and Los Angeles, leading to a decline in on-time performance. Meanwhile, Horizon Air, Alaska's regional affiliate, has been forced to cancel numerous flights because of a pilot shortage.

Nevertheless, Alaska Air was able to give its shareholders two pieces of good news last week. First, the company reported a strong second-quarter profit. Second, management announced that it had been able to accelerate a critical merger integration milestone by about six months.

While many airlines are on pace this year to post weak earnings growth -- or even earnings declines -- Alaska Air's profit growth is being boosted by the addition of Virgin America. Last quarter, Virgin America contributed more than $30 million of profit for Alaska Air, net of interest costs related to financing the deal.

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Source: Fool.com