AirAsia Group Bhd recorded a net pro t of RM915 million for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2018 (3Q18), compared to RM505 million for the same quarter in the preceding year.

The increase was on the back of its one-off gain on the sale of its remaining 25% stake in its joint-venture unit with travel platform Expedia Group Inc, as well as the reversal of deferred tax liabilities arising from the disposals of aircraft.

The airline said the net profit also doubled due to a 9% surge in total passengers carried.

Its earnings per share stood at 27.4 sen compared to 15.1 sen a year ago.

The board declared a special dividend of 40 sen per share to be paid on Dec 28, 2018.

Revenue for 3Q18 grew by 7% to RM2.6 billion from RM2.4 billion a year ago.

“Load factor was at 82% in 3Q18, compared to 87% in 3Q17, as the increase in passengers carried was lower than the 16% increase in capacity,” the low-cost carrier noted in its exchange filing yesterday.

For the cumulative nine-month period (9M18), revenue rose to RM7.7 billion from RM7.05 billion in 9M17, while net profit increased to RM2.42 billion from RM1.27 billion a year earlier.

On prospects, AirAsia noted it will remain cost-disciplined in all areas and increase overall efficiency and remain nimble in order to maintain healthy profit margins.

“For the full year, we are on track to achieve a group load factor target of 85%. We will continue to emphasise our One AirAsia initiatives to further reduce costs, while improving the overall operational efficiencies and actively monitoring each route’s profitability,” the airline noted. — TMR