Thomas Cook puts airline business up for sale to raise cash

Thomas Cook has said it is conducting a "strategic review" of its airline as it seeks to find funds to invest more in its hotels business.

"We are at an early stage in this review process which will consider all options to enhance value to shareholders and intensify our strategic focus".

Airlines across Europe are struggling amid fierce competition.

Tui has shocked investors with a profit downgrade and Thomas Cook has put its airline up for sale, underlining the pressures being felt by travel operators this year.

Last year's hot weather seems to still be hurting sales.

'This review, which could result in a sale of the division, is an acknowledgement that the company needs to take radical action to steady its performance and fix a fragile looking balance sheet, ' says AJ Bell's Russ Mould.

"Where Summer 2018 bookings started very strongly, bookings for Summer 2019 reflect some consumer uncertainty, particularly in the United Kingdom, and our decision to reduce capacity which will both mitigate risk in our tour operator business and help our airline to consolidate the strong growth achieved past year", said Peter Fankhauser, Chief Executive.

The company, which offers package holidays to northern Europeans looking for summer sunshine, has made a decision to focus more on hotels.

The embattled travel agent saw its operating loss increase by £14m year on year to hit £60m for the three months to the end of December as holiday bookings dropped, it revealed.

Net debt jumped to £1.59bn.

Credit Suisse said easyJet, Lufthansa, IAG and Ryanair could be interested in different parts of the airline business, which it said could be worth 1.8 billion to 3.2 billion pounds.

Thomas Cook operates planes in the UK, Germany and Scandinavia.

"We have been clear that Thomas Cook doesn't need to own an airline outright to be a successful tour operator". A quarter of the fleet flies long-haul.

In the first-quarter trading update, it said it would not change its outlook for the full-year. The firm earned "Neutral" rating on Wednesday, September 26 by Citigroup. In all, it operates 103 aircraft and posted a 37 per cent rise in operating profit a year ago to £129 million (S$225.8 million).

While the company blamed too many airlines chasing too few passengers, costs may be the real problem, industry experts said.

The oldest travel company in the world stumbled badly previous year when a heatwave in northern Europe deterred holiday makers from booking lucrative last minute deals, leading to two major profit warnings and talk of a need to raise funds.

Related News:

10 February 2019

Anupam Kher Says in Support of Manikarnika Star
Kangna had expected the same reaction from Alia, but failing to receive the same treatment she came down harsh on her. Mumbai: Kangana Ranaut has always been the "Jhansi ki Rani" of Bollywood and doesn't spare anyone who hurts her.

10 February 2019

Ocado warehouse fire in Andover finally out
And it said it had comprehensive insurance for the property, stock and equipment on site, and for business interruption losses. It will, we believe, issue a slow sales growth warning while it tries to source alternative solutions to fulfil orders.

10 February 2019

3rd T20I: Kiwis beat India by 4 runs to claim series
On the third ball of the final over, Karthik denied a single and later ended up taking a single off the next ball. Having regularly lost middle-order wickets, India gave the impression of lacking behind in the chase.
10 February 2019

Boston Celtics vs. L.A. Clippers - 2/9/19 NBA Pick, Odds, and Prediction
The Clippers made headlines on Wednesday with a deal headlined by Tobias Harris to the Philadelphia 76ers . Just moments later, however, Irving came up limping when trying to run around a pick on defense.

10 February 2019

Wigan's Chris Ashton a surprise inclusion in England RU side
This could well just be a platitude that all managers will say after a good performance, although they don't really mean it. He was nearly available for selection this week, but he's not.

10 February 2019

Actor Mahesh Anand Found Dead At Mumbai Home, Body Was Decomposed
Police did not ruled out suicide even though no suicide note has been recovered. His body has reportedly been taken to Cooper Hospital for postmortem.
10 February 2019

DUI Suspect Shows Off His Dance Moves During Field Sobriety Test
At one point in the tests, Larson was instructed to walk heel-to-toe across a piece of tape stretched out on the ground. The deputy asks Larson if he is 'complete with the exercise, ' but he just mumbles and continues his shuffle.

10 February 2019

Uefa boss Aleksander Ceferin re-elected on four-year term
UEFA called the session to explain how referees will apply video review of key decisions for the first time in its competitions. Aleksander Ceferin has been formally re-elected as president of UEFA by acclamation.

10 February 2019

Renault to alert prosecutors over ex-CEO Ghosn’s wedding costs
After his Nov 19 arrest, Ghosn was quickly ousted by Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors , the other Japanese partner in the alliance. Renault's board was told about the discovery as reported in Le Figaro on Wednesday , Reuters reported .
10 February 2019

Batch of 12,000 blood plasma found contaminated with HIV
South China Morning Post reports that "The faulty batch comprised 12,229 50ml bottles of plasma due to expire in June 2021". Shanghai Xinxing Pharmaceutical has been instructed to halt production of the vaccine and to initiate an emergency recall.

10 February 2019

Wells Fargo extends branch hours after mobile system outage
Wells Fargo responded to some Twitter users that it was aware of an issue regarding direct deposit payments. Whitney Dawe uses the Wells Fargo app every day; he's been banking with them for almost eight years.

10 February 2019

Fortnite Share The Love Event - Overtime Challenges & Rewards, Double XP Weekend & Competitive
Players who now support a Creator or enter a Creator Code between February 8 - 22 will receive the free Cuddle Hearts Wrap. Don't sweat it, Epic is keeping tracking of things, so you'll receive your goody pack as soon as the update releases.