Overview

• United posted adjusted third-quarter earnings of $2.78 per share versus estimates around $2.62, with revenue of $15.23 billion trailing the $15.33 billion consensus and net income of $949 million up 2.6% year over year on sales.
• The airline guided to fourth-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.00 to $3.50 per share, above Wall Street expectations, and signaled the period could set a company record for operating revenue with $250 million to $300 million of accruals.
• Higher-yield segments continued to grow as premium-cabin revenue rose 6% year over year, basic economy increased 4%, and loyalty-program sales advanced 9%, with cargo up 3%.
• Capacity expanded about 7% from a year ago as unit passenger revenue declined 3.3% on domestic routes and 7.1% on international routes, while TRASM fell 4.3% and CASM decreased 2.8%.
• United begins introducing Starlink Wi‑Fi on a Newark–Houston flight and targets fleetwide deployment by 2027, as management notes improving demand but keeps an eye on air-traffic-control staffing strains tied to the government shutdown.