Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, warns that easyJet’s profitability will remain under pressure after first‑half revenue rose 12% to £4bn while underlying pre‑tax losses widened 40% to £552m.
Chiekrie says easyJet, the UK‑based low‑cost carrier, has stimulated demand through fleet upgrades, new hubs in Milan and Rome and a roughly 30% surge in its package‑holiday arm, but those investments, plus one‑off legal costs and higher operating expenses, have weighed on margins as forward bookings for the second half track about two percentage points below last year.
He also red flags the airline’s fuel sensitivity, historically roughly 25% of revenue, alongside hedging and liquidity signals, whilst noting even though net cash improved 33% to £434m, booked RASK (Revenue per Available Seat Kilometer) to date is down c.4% year‑on‑year.
“As a result, we expect this year's and next year’s profits to come in well below 2025 levels.”
