Lufthansa Group rises on strong 2022 turnaround

Lufthansa Group reported a solid financial turnaround in its 2022 results on Friday, swinging to adjusted EBIT of €1.5bn, from a loss of €1.7bn in the prior year.

The German airline group said its revenue almost doubled to €33bn, while its adjusted free cash flow reached an all-time high of €2.5bn.

It said its passenger airline segment benefited from a significant increase in demand for airline tickets, leading to an operating loss of €300m, which was a significant improvement from the previous year's loss of €3.3bn.

Specifically, both Swiss and Austrian Airlines generated an operating profit in 2022.

Lufthansa Cargo and Lufthansa Technik also reported record results, with Lufthansa Cargo's adjusted EBIT rising to €1.6bn, and Lufthansa Technik's adjusted EBIT improving by 41% year-on-year to €511m.

Furthermore, the group said its balance sheet improved significantly, with net pension obligations decreasing to €2bn, and net debt decreasing to €6.9bn, almost reaching pre-crisis levels.

Shareholder's equity almost doubled to €8.5bn as at 31 December.

The company said it planned to maintain liquidity in the range of €8bn to €10bn in the future to better protect itself against potential future crises, and as at 31 December, the Lufthansa Group's available liquidity of €10.4bn was above its newly-defined long-term target corridor.

“Lufthansa is back. In just one year, we have achieved an unprecedented financial turnaround,” said chief executive officer Carsten Spohr.

“With an operating profit of €1.5bn, the Lufthansa Group has achieved a much better result than expected.

“Demand for air travel remains high in 2023. We are investing billions in new fuel-efficient and state-of-the-art aircraft.”

Spohr said the company’s “innovative services”, a new premium cabin, and new digital tools, were part of its desire to be the industry’s “quality and innovation leader”.

“Likewise, it is our ambition to drive forward effective climate protection, for example by being the first airline group worldwide to introduce green fares.

“The Lufthansa Group is already number one in Europe and number four worldwide.

“For our guests and our employees, we want to continue to grow, shape the future and expand our market position.”

At 1314 CET (1214 GMT), shares in Deutsche Lufthansa AG were up 6.51% in Frankfurt, at €10.50.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.