Slight full-year profit drop belies Copa's strength

Copa Airlines and Aero Republica parent Copa Holdings posted a $152.2 million profit in 2008, down 6% from the $161.1 million reported in 2007 as a result of a $20.2 million write-down in the value of its fuel hedges.

Nearly all metrics improved on the operational front. The Panamanian company enjoyed a 25.5% year-over-year surge in revenue to $1.29 billion and a 13.4% rise in operating income to $224 million from $197.5 million in 2007.

Traffic rose 14.6% to 6.72 billion RPMs against an 11.7% gain in capacity to 8.85 billion ASMs, lifting load factor 1.9 points to 75.9%. Yield was up 9.8% to 18.1 cents on a 12.3% increase in unit revenue to 14.6 cents. CASM grew 14.9% to 12 cents. The company ended the year with 55 aircraft--42 at Copa (27 737NGs and 15 E-190s) and 13 at Aero Republica.

Fourth-quarter net earnings of $51.9 million were 46.1% higher than the year-ago period's, while operating income soared 95.5% to a company-record $84 million.