United Airlines Shuts Down Rumors About a Merger
Skift Take
Key Points
- United Airlines denied rumors of merger talks with other airlines, including JetBlue.
- JetBlue is exploring potential partnerships after the dissolution of the Northeast Alliance.
- United Airlines reported a significant increase in profits, contrasting with JetBlue's financial struggles.
Summary
United Airlines has refuted rumors of being in merger discussions with any other airline, including JetBlue. While United Airlines reported a 64% profit increase in the fourth quarter, JetBlue is struggling financially following the loss of the Northeast Alliance and is seeking new partnerships. The performance of airline stocks is tracked in the Skift Travel 200 index, which provides insights into the sector's financial health.
United Airlines issued a blunt statement on Friday, saying that it was not in any talks with another airline regarding a merger.
“It has come to the Company's attention that there may be rumors spreading among certain of our investors regarding United's involvement in a potential strategic transaction with another airline,” the carrier said in a regulatory filing posted Friday. “The Company is not in negotiations or discussions with any other airline regarding a merger, acquisition or similar strategic transaction and has not been in any recent discussions with any airlines regarding the same.”
The statement seems to be in response to a rumor that United was potentially interested in a merger with JetBlue or buying some of the airline’s assets. The rumor circulated online this week, after JetBlue executives said during a call with analysts that they were still interested in reviving a domestic partnership like the Northeast Alliance.
JetBlue formed the Northeast Alliance with American Airlines but a federal judge struck it down, arguing that the partnership was anticompetitive.
“So we're having conversations with a number of carriers right now to discuss the potential for future partnership,” JetBlue CEO Joanna Geraghty said Tuesday. “The judge in Massachusetts obviously laid out a framework that would be acceptable under at least the prior administration. So that's what we're looking at, but there's nothing to announce now.”
United declined to comment on the regulatory filing.
Airline industry executives have been hopeful that the Trump administration will have a more relaxed attitude toward mergers. The Northeast Alliance, for example, was approved under the first Trump administration. The Biden administration sued to block the Northeast Alliance and the JetBlue-Spirit merger.
United reported a 64% increase in profits for the fourth quarter and upbeat outlook on the first quarter on January 22.
JetBlue, on the other hand, has been struggling since the loss of the Northeast Alliance and its proposed merger with Spirit Airlines. The New York-based carrier offered a dim outlook for the first quarter, and its stock went plunging shortly after. JetBlue shares sank 28% on Tuesday.
Airlines Sector Stock Index Performance Year-to-Date
What am I looking at? The performance of airline sector stocks within the ST200. The index includes companies publicly traded across global markets including network carriers, low-cost carriers, and other related companies.
The Skift Travel 200 (ST200) combines the financial performance of nearly 200 travel companies worth more than a trillion dollars into a single number. See more airlines sector financial performance.
Photo Credit: A United Airlines Boeing 767. Vincenzo Pace www.aerovincenzo.com / Vincenzo Pace
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