Founder & Managing Director, AIR Control Tower, AIR Control Tower

Neil Glynn

Founder & Managing Director, AIR Control Tower

AIR Control Tower

AIR Control Tower is an independent research and analysis platform. Its mission is to provide impactful insight and analysis across the global airline industry at a company and market level via detailed financial models to aid decision making for key stake holders at a time when risks have seldom, if ever, been higher and the global sector grapples with the imperative of funding de-carbonisation. Unique analysis forecasting global carrier-level earnings/cash flows, and restructuring/de-leveraging prospects, is designed to dynamically assess the health of the industry, predict surprises and identify potential requirements for third party support.

Insights on the global airline industry

Equity Bottom-Up

International Consolidated Airlines Group / Equity Bottom-Up

International Consolidated Airlines Group

<ul>
<li>Following highly challenged 1H24 performances from Air France-KLM and Lufthansa, but strength from IAG, we publish a deep dive on the drivers of divergent performances.</li>
<li>We raise our forecasts at IAG but make heavy cuts at Air France-KLM and Lufthansa, with concerns over their ability to improve over pre-pandemic performances.</li>
<li>This critical juncture, as each carrier implements some type of transformation plan, and carriers around the world see earnings re-set downwards, requires strong governance for expanding portfolios of airlines.</li>
</ul>


Following highly challenged 1H24 performances from Air France-KLM and Lufthansa, but strength from IAG, we publish a deep dive on the drivers of divergent performances.
We raise our forecasts at IAG but make heavy cuts at Air France-KLM and Lufthansa, with concerns over their ability to improve over pre-pandemic performances.
This critical juncture, as each carrier implements some type of transformation plan, and carriers around the world see earnings re-set downwards, requires strong governance for expanding portfolios of airlines.


European Airlines – Moving Parts Within Group Performances Illustrate Structural Requirements

<ul>
<li>We update forecasts for the European airline sector, highlighting it will be difficult for most carriers to grow earnings in 2023.</li>
<li>We publish detailed earnings bridges highlighting the damage to full year earnings from structural damage to 1Q results due to inflationary pressure and the loss of corporate traffic</li>
<li>This also suggests opportunities for the sector to address winter woes to supplement strong summer performances.</li>
</ul>


We update forecasts for the European airline sector, highlighting it will be difficult for most carriers to grow earnings in 2023.
We publish detailed earnings bridges highlighting the damage to full year earnings from structural damage to 1Q results due to inflationary pressure and the loss of corporate traffic
This also suggests opportunities for the sector to address winter woes to supplement strong summer performances.


European Airlines – The Ravages of Increased Earnings Seasonality

Technical Analyst, Vermilion Research

Joe Jasper

Technical Analyst

Technical and Quantitative Research

Vermilion Research

Vermilion’s objective is to deliver timely, actionable, and unique technical research to professional investors through the application of our various technical indicators.

Our research strategists seek to highlight securities which we believe are at major inflection points, based on our various technical and quantitative indicators, and offer asymmetric risk/return profiles. Our unique research methodology, centered on relative strength, enables our strategists to deliver superior investment recommendations.

Our process begins by organizing the universe of actively traded stocks into discrete sectors, then into industry groups. We then apply our technical and quantitative tools to identify developing price trends. Once attractive trends are identified within a selected sector or group, we screen for individual stocks which we believe offer the best risk/reward profile. We provide a historical perspective that often reveals, through our long-term charts, how price patterns often repeat themselves over time.

Technical Analysis

<ul>
<li>Our outlook remains bullish on global equities (MSCI ACWI) with ACWI-US and the S&amp;P 500 holding above their respective bases at $117 and 5650-5670.</li>
<li>We've discussed since mid-October how we would use any pre-election pullback in the MSCI ACWI or the SPX (U.S. remains our only country overweight) as an opportunity to add exposure</li>
<li>And we continue to see a high probability of significant upside going into year-end and the early part of 2025.</li>
</ul>


Our outlook remains bullish on global equities (MSCI ACWI) with ACWI-US and the S&amp;P 500 holding above their respective bases at $117 and 5650-5670.
We've discussed since mid-October how we would use any pre-election pullback in the MSCI ACWI or the SPX (U.S. remains our only country overweight) as an opportunity to add exposure
And we continue to see a high probability of significant upside going into year-end and the early part of 2025.


Buy the Pullback in MSCI ACWI and S&P 500; Buys in Uranium, Transports, Services, Technology, More

<ul>
<li>Lufthansa mainline losses in 2024 force management to pursue transformation</li>
<li>​Portfolio management challenges driven by a variety of factors including LH mainline unit costs and pricing at sister companies</li>
<li>Much work to do to turn ITA around, while firm management focus is required at home</li>
</ul>


Lufthansa mainline losses in 2024 force management to pursue transformation
​Portfolio management challenges driven by a variety of factors including LH mainline unit costs and pricing at sister companies
Much work to do to turn ITA around, while firm management focus is required at home


Lufthansa Group – Revisiting Margin and Portfolio Management Challenges

<ul>
<li>Forward looking fare data suggests pricing further weakening for the European flag carriers on long haul in particular.</li>
<li>We expect Lufthansa to miss EBIT guidance by 30% in 2024 while we also cut Air France-KLM 2024 EBIT by 15%.</li>
<li>IAG stands out as most resilient, with BA seemingly outperforming peer pricing on the Transatlantic.</li>
</ul>


Forward looking fare data suggests pricing further weakening for the European flag carriers on long haul in particular.
We expect Lufthansa to miss EBIT guidance by 30% in 2024 while we also cut Air France-KLM 2024 EBIT by 15%.
IAG stands out as most resilient, with BA seemingly outperforming peer pricing on the Transatlantic.


European Airlines - Fare Softening Suggests Elevated Earnings Risk with Self-Help Stories Crucial

United Kingdom

International Consolidated Airlines Group S.A. provides transportation services. The Company offers international and domestic air passenger and cargo transportation services. International Consolidated Airlines Group serves customers worldwide.

International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG LN)

Price Gauge
52-week Range	0.00 - 0.00
Market Cap (USDm)	0.00
P/E	0.00
Dividend (Yield)	0.00

International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG LN)

European Airlines – Moving Parts Within Group Performances Illustrate Structural Requirements

Deep dive into the divergent economics of each airline within the expanding European network carrier groups AF-KLM, IAG, Lufthansa to illustrate...

Neil Glynn

European Airlines – The Ravages of Increased Earnings Seasonality

Deep dive into winter loss-making for the European airline sector, with structural changes due to corporate traffic loss and inflation. These...

Neil Glynn

Buy the Pullback in MSCI ACWI and S&P 500; Buys in Uranium, Transports, Services, Technology, More

Buy the Pullback in MSCI $ACWI and $SPX; Still bullish on global equities with $ACWI and the SPX holding above their respective bases at $117 and...

Vermilion Research

Lufthansa Group – Revisiting Margin and Portfolio Management Challenges

Lufthansa's latest profit warning includes the message that Lufthansa mainline needs a transformation programme. We outline the issues at LH...

Neil Glynn

European Airlines - Fare Softening Suggests Elevated Earnings Risk with Self-Help Stories Crucial

We re-highlight our recent forecast cuts at Air France-KLM and Lufthansa following Air France-KLM's profit warning today, which was due to the...

Neil Glynn

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)