TUI shares jump as it reports rise in profits
TUI’s share price rose this morning as the travel giant reported a rise in profits just shy of 11% despite a ‘challenging year’.
The group said its transformation as a ‘developer, investor and operator of hotels and cruise ships’ is paying off, helping it achieve double-digit earnings for the third year running.
Revenue for the year to September 30 grew 5.3% to €19.52 billion and underlying EBITA rose 10.9% to €1.22 billion on a constant currency basis, just ahead of guidance.
The news saw TUI’s share price jump 6.4%, in stark contrast to the sharp fall of Thomas Cook’s share price last month when it announced a £163 million loss in a ‘disappointing year’.
TUI CEO Fritz Joussen agreed 2018 had been a challenging year, particularly for tour operators, but said the group was better placed to ride the storm.
"The weakness of pound sterling resulting from the Brexit vote, prolonged air traffic disruption caused by French air traffic controller strikes and a prolonged heatwave in Northern and Central Europe impacted the entire sector and were also reflected in the operating result delivered by Markets & Airlines, which fell short of the previous year’s levels," he said.
"We are investing, we are growing with TUI’s high-margin products and services and our businesses are increasingly scaling.
"Today, our own Holiday Experiences content account for more than 70 per cent of our earnings: hotels, cruises, excursions and destination activities. This enables us to clearly differentiate ourselves from the competition. With more than 20 million customers, use of state-of-the-art IT and intelligent customer systems, we have considerable potential for new business, turnover and earnings. We will continue our successful transformation: The next step will transform TUI into a digital and platform organisation."
He said in the financial year 2019, the TUI Executive Board expects to deliver growth in underlying earnings of at least 10% in a continuing ‘challenging market environment’.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive
Euromonitor International unveils world’s top 100 city destinations for 2025