Southwest Airlines quarterly profit slides 30% and says growth will slow next year
Southwest Airlines earned $193 million in the third quarter, 30% less than its profit a year ago DALLAS -- Southwest Airlines' third- quarter profit fell 30% to $193 million despite record revenue as leisure Travel boomed over the summer. The airline's labor costs rose sharply, however, more than offsetting the increase in revenue. Southwest predicted Thursday that a key measure of pricing power will fall sharply in the fourth quarter and it will scale back its aggressive growth plans early next year. The results, and particularly Southwest's plans to throttle back on growth, are likely to add to concerns that demand for domestic travel, the heart of Southwest’s business, could weaken. Shares of Southwest Airlines Co. slid 3% before the opening bell. The airline's profit is down from $277 million a year ago and, excluding special items, worked out to 38 cents per share. That matched Wall Street expectations, according to a FactSet survey of analysts. Revenue rose ...