Allegiant Travel Co. reported earnings for the third quarter of 2012 that translates to the highest third quarter earnings per share in the company's history.
Company Chairman and CEO Maurice J. Gallagher Jr. said the third quarter, typically a weak period, was the 39th consecutive profitable quarter for the destination travel airline, which operates a hub out of the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport in Vienna.
''This is particularly noteworthy to have done this in a quarter with the average oil price at $92 per barrel and in a demand environment that has been slightly weaker than historical norms,'' Gallagher said.
Total operating revenue for the three-month quarter ending Sept. 30 totaled $216.9 million, up 13 percent from the third quarter of 2011, when it was $191.5 million, according to the company's earnings report.
Net income for the quarter totaled $16.9 million, a 79 percent increase from the same quarter in 2011, which reported net income of $9.5 million. Earnings per share to common stockholders showed a 78 percent increase to 87 cents per share from 49 cents per share in September 2011.
Operating statistics released by the company indicated that during the third quarter the airline transported 1.73 million passengers, up 9.4 percent from third quarter 2011. Load factor, which measures how much of an airline's passenger carrying capacity is used and is an important figure airlines use for analyzing efficiency, did decline slightly to 87 percent from 85 percent last year at this time.