Jet2 boosts profit forecast and reveals top 10 places for British tourists
BUDGET travel agency Jet2 has raised its 2023 profit forecast for a third time as it says Brits are keen to escape 'our rainy island'.
Boss Steve Heapy said holidaymakers are flocking to sunspots in the Mediterranean and the Canary Islands, as well as to European leisure cities.
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Travelers also benefit from the company's higher-margin package deals.
Last year, Jet2 estimated profits for the current financial year of between £370m and £385m.
In April it raised estimates again, but after a bumper summer it raised them to £480 million to £520 million.
Yesterday, after a pleasant winter, the company said profits for the year to the end of March would be between £510m and £520m.
Winter bookings increased by 17 percent year on year.
Mr Heapy said that despite “many demands on consumers' discretionary incomes, our customers cherish their time away from our rainy island”.
The Leeds-based company flies from 11 UK airports to 65 European destinations.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: “Jet2 has an advantage because of its strong reputation for customer service.
“If you have to spend more money on your holiday, you want to be even more confident that you will be taken care of – along the way and when you get there.”
Cruising profit for Airbus
French aircraft maker Airbus yesterday said profits rose 4 percent to £4.96 billion in 2023 and announced a special dividend.
It said orders are booming from airlines dealing with a recovery in travel demand after the pandemic.
However, the company also admitted that rising costs at the struggling space company, which faces stiff competition from US launch vehicles and a new generation of cheap satellites, would cost it £171m.
Airbus – which supplies 26 of Jet2's planes – delivered 735 planes last year, but expects to surpass that by about 800 in 2024.
Boss Guillaume Faury said the production increase came despite an environment “that remains complex and influenced by supply chain challenges and geopolitical conflicts”.
The new deliveries include some of its A320neos, a rival to Boeing's 737 Max, which has been hit by major safety problems.
The pads of capital are left behind
According to ZOOPLA, homes in London last year took on average twice as long to sell as homes in Scotland.
In 2023, the UK average was 34 days from being placed on the market until a sale was agreed, subject to contract.
But in Scotland it took just 20 days, while buyers in London had to wait an average of 40 days before a sale could be agreed.
Buyers then had to wait three to six months before receiving the keys to their new home.
Divi closed by close bros quiz
Shares in financial company Close Brothers plunged by almost a quarter yesterday after the company dropped its dividend amid a City Watchdog investigation.
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The slump left shares at their lowest level in almost thirty years.
The Financial Conduct Authority is investigating whether commission payments on car loans were too high.
Millions in compensation could be paid out to hundreds of thousands of people who took out loans before a change in the law in January 2021 banned commissions based on “discretionary interest rates.”
Close bosses warned there was “significant uncertainty” over the outcome of the review.
Close, which has been part of the city since 1878, said it hoped to restore dividends in 2025 “once the FCA has completed its process and any financial implications for the group have been assessed”.
Woe to Gleeson
PROPERTY developer MJ Gleeson saw half-year profits fall by more than 50 per cent in the six months to December.
Hit by a market downturn, profits fell to £7.2m from £16.1m in 2022.
The Sheffield-based company said the property slowdown had forced it to sideline some developments.
769 homes were sold in that period, compared to 894 the year before.
Looking ahead, boss Graham Prothero said there were “encouraging signs of a recovery in booking rates”.
Tax a lot
PEOPLE who receive tax benefits, but no other qualifying benefits, will receive a one-off payment of £299 towards living costs from today.
Around 700,000 UK households will receive the payment automatically from HMRC between February 16 and 22.
Relx shoots up
British data company Relx reported a 9 percent rise in profits to £2.3 billion and yesterday unveiled a £1 billion shareholder-friendly share buyback programme.
It said revenues for the year rose 8 percent to £9.2 billion, and predicted that “artificial intelligence and other technologies” will drive profits “for many years to come”.
The company also organizes the MCM Comic Con event through its exhibition division.
It has generated the best performance of any FTSE 100 company over the past forty years.