Topic: Growth Stocks

Stock Pickers Digest Hotline – Friday, November 9, 2012

Article Excerpt

WESTJET AIRLINES LTD., $18.17, symbol WJA on Toronto, reports that its revenue rose 11.8% in the three months ended September 30, 2012, to $866.5 million from $775.3 million a year earlier. Demand for the company’s flights remains high, and it has entered into new partnerships with other airlines; these were the main reasons for the increase. WestJet’s load factor rose to a record 84.6%. Load factor is the percentage of available seats that are occupied by paying passengers. More important, the rise came despite the fact that the company increased its capacity by 2% to meet higher demand. Earnings jumped 79.9%, to $70.6 million from $39.3 million. That’s a new record for the second quarter. It also marks the company’s 30th consecutive quarter of profitability. The higher revenue was the main reason for the gain. Earnings per share rose 72.2%, to $0.31 from $0.18, on fewer shares outstanding. WestJet aims to start up its new short-haul Canadian regional airline, which it has now named…