Air Canada Reports Record Q1 Results: Is Now the Time to Buy?

Air Canada (TSX:AC) released record first-quarter earnings on May 12, and its stock has reacted by rising over 5%. Should you buy in to the rally?

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Air Canada (TSX:AC), the largest full-service airline in Canada, announced record first-quarter earnings on the morning of May 11, and its stock has responded by rising over 3%. Let’s take a closer look at the results to determine if we should consider buying in to this rally, or if we should wait for it to subside.

Breaking down the record-setting results

Here’s a summary of Air Canada’s first-quarter earnings compared with its results in the same period a year ago.

Metric Q1 2015 Q1 2014
Adjusted Earnings Per Share $0.41 ($0.46)
Operating Revenues $3.25 billion $3.07 billion

Source: Air Canada

In the first quarter of fiscal 2015, Air Canada reported an adjusted net profit of $122 million, or $0.41 per share, compared with an adjusted net loss of $132 million, or $0.46 per share, in the same quarter a year ago, as its operating revenues increased 6% to $3.25 billion.

These very strong results can be attributed to two primary factors. First, Air Canada carried 9.49 million passengers during the quarter, an increase of 8.4% compared with the year-ago period. Second, its total operating expenses decreased 2% to $3.05 billion, driven by low oil prices, which led to its economic fuel cost decreasing 30% to just 66.3 cents per litre.

Here’s a quick breakdown of 10 other notable statistics from the report compared with the year-ago period:

  1. Revenue passenger miles increased 10.9% to 14.94 billion
  2. Passenger load factor improved 120 basis points to 81.5%
  3. Adjusted operating cost per available seat mile decreased 1.8% to 11.9 cents
  4. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, and aircraft rent (EBITDAR) increased 200.7% to $442 million
  5. EBITDAR margin expanded 880 basis points to 13.6%
  6. Operating income increased $262 million to $200 million
  7. Operating margin expanded 820 basis points to 6.2%
  8. Free cash flow increased 1,026.5% to $383 million
  9. Aircraft in operating fleet increased 4.5% to 369
  10. Return on invested capital improved 430 basis points to 15.2%

Can the rally in Air Canada’s shares continue?

The first quarter was one for the record books for Air Canada, so I think the post-earnings rally in its stock is more than warranted. I also think the stock could go higher from here because it trades at very low valuations, including just 6.7 times fiscal 2014’s adjusted earnings per share of $1.81 and a mere 4.6 times its trailing 12 months adjusted earnings per share of $2.66, both of which are very inexpensive compared with the industry average price-to-earnings multiple of 13.3.

With all of the information above in mind, I think Air Canada represents one of the best long-term investment opportunities in the airline industry today. Foolish investors should take a closer look and strongly consider beginning to scale in to positions.

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This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the “official” recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium service or advisor. We’re Motley! Questioning an investing thesis — even one of our own — helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer, so we sometimes publish articles that may not be in line with recommendations, rankings or other content.

Fool contributor Joseph Solitro has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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