THY Turkish Airlines said Thursday its consolidated net profit fell 7 percent in the third quarter, less than forecast, as sales jumped and the value of its fleet fell less than expected.
Net income was TRY374 million lira (USD$253 million) in the July-September period. Sales jumped 17 percent to TRY2.09 billion, according to a filing with the stock exchange.
"In parallel to sales revenue, the upward growth trend in traffic results continued in the first nine months... The number of passengers increased by 10 percent," the state-run airline said in a statement.
Europe's fourth-largest airline had EBITDAR, or earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, amortization and aircraft rentals, of TRY1.25 billion in the first nine months of 2009, up 41 percent from the same period of 2008, it said.
"The better-than-expected operating profit is partly due to the fleet valuation," said Cemal Demirtas, an analyst at Oyak Securities in Istanbul.
The state-run carrier's aircraft are valued in dollars, and the US currency's 4.3 percent drop against the euro in the third quarter was expected to hit that valuation.
"It's a company that remains profitable while growing rapidly," said Alper Paksoy, an analyst at EFG Istanbul Securities, before the results were announced.
