Southwest Airlines on Wednesday flagged softer August leisure bookings and joined two other US airlines in warning of higher fuel costs in the third quarter due to a jump in crude prices.
The largest US domestic carrier said August bookings were at the lower end of its expectations, in part due to seasonal trends, but maintained that overall leisure demand and yields remain healthy.
Shares of Southwest fell 4% premarket, before paring some losses to close down 2.6% at $29.97.
The forecast comes as early signs emerge of domestic travel demand weakening, with inflationary pressures hurting consumers even as carriers hand out costly contracts to retain workers.
United Airlines and Alaska Air Group also warned of higher fuel costs in the current quarter as crude oil prices rose for a third straight month in August, amid signs of tightening supply.
In a regulatory filing, United said jet fuel prices have climbed over 20% since mid-July.
The carrier also said it had no imminent plans to move its headquarters to Denver from Chicago after buying 113 acres of land there. Finance Chief Gerald Laderman at the TD Cowen Transportation Conference said the first order of business is the expansion of the flight training center in Denver.
Southwest said it continues to forecast a “solid (third-quarter) profit,” but trimmed its expectations for revenue per available seat mile – a proxy for pricing power – to a 5% to 7% fall, compared with a 3% to 7% fall forecast earlier.
Alaska Air expects a quarterly adjusted pre-tax margin of 10% to 12%, lower than its prior expectation of 14% to 16%.
US airlines do not generally hedge against fuel costs, making them vulnerable to price swings.
“The relatively quick up move in fuel has given the industry little time to respond through fares,” Citi Research analyst Stephen Trent said in a note.
Houston Astros third baseman Isaac Paredes has opted to forgo season-ending surgery on his strained right hamstring and instead will rehab the injury in an effort to return this season, general manager Dana Brown told reporters Monday.
The 26-year-old Paredes, who is hitting .259 with 19 home runs and 50 RBIs this season, was placed on the injured list on July 20 after he was hurt while running to first base. Brown said the injury was “severe.”
Paredes has received a platelet-rich plasma injection and has had multiple rounds of imaging. His rehab stint, which will mostly take place in Houston around the team, will begin after a “long period” of letting the hamstring rest before beginning any sort of exercise, Brown said.
If Paredes undergoes surgery, he likely wouldn’t be able to return for at least six months.
“His whole opinion on this is, he wants to work hard to try to get back this season,” Brown said Monday. “Of course, he’s going to dedicate himself to getting back.”
The Astros were proactive at the trade deadline, acquiring infielder Carlos Correa from the Minnesota Twins. Correa, a Rookie of the Year and two-time All-Star in his prior stint with the Astros, has agreed to move from shortstop to third base while Paredes is out of the lineup.
The Astros (62-50) currently lead the AL West with around 50 games remaining in the regular season.
“He’s doing well and he’s working hard,” Astros manager Joe Espada said of Paredes. “He’s in good spirits, and I know he would rather be on the field. We hope for the best.”
Atlanta Braves third baseman Austin Riley on Monday was placed on the 10-day injured list for the second time in two months with a strained lower abdominal muscle.
Right-hander Grant Holmes, meanwhile, has opted to rehab his injured right elbow rather than undergoing Tommy John surgery, manager Brian Snitker told reporters.
Riley suffered the injury while tagging out Cincinnati’s Elly De La Cruz near home plate in the Braves’ 4-2 win on Sunday in the rain-delayed MLB Speedway Classic at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Riley also landed on the IL on July 12 with a strained abdomen. He returned on July 25.
The Braves recalled infielders Nacho Alvarez Jr. and Jonathan Ornelas from Triple-A Gwinnett before opening a home series against Milwaukee on Monday night. The team optioned outfielder Jarred Kelenic to Gwinnett following Sunday’s game.
Riley is hitting .260 with 16 homers and 54 RBIs.
Snitker said Holmes, who has damage to his UCL, made the decision to not have surgery at the present time after consulting with two doctors. The pitcher could also reconsider and have surgery after the season.
Snitker did not give a timeline as to when Snitker, who was placed on the 60-day injured list on July 27, will begin throwing again. He is not eligible to be activated until Sept. 26.
Holmes is 4-9 with a 3.99 ERA and 123 strikeouts this season. He had 15 strikeouts in a game against the Colorado Rockies in June.
The Braves’ other Opening Day starters also are all on the injured list, with AJ Smith-Shawver out for the season after having Tommy John surgery.
Snitker said All-Star left-hander Chris Sale threw a bullpen session as he works his way back from a fractured rib. He is next scheduled to throw live batting practice.
Reynaldo Lopez, who was placed on the IL on March 29 with shoulder inflammation after one start, is playing catch, but Snitker said there is no timetable for his return.
Spencer Schwellenbach, who is recovering from a fractured elbow, has not resumed throwing.
BRISTOL, Tenn. — The instant the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds cleared the baseball diamond inside the infield at Bristol Motor Speedway, a new clock started.
“The Last Great Colosseum” has to switch from hosting the MLB Speedway Classic and be ready for NASCAR’s return to the historic racetrack for a playoff race Sept. 13.
The first MLB regular-season game in the state of Tennessee set a record with a paid attendance of 91,032, but now it must get back to its racing roots.
“It is difficult, but it’s things that we like,” said Steve Swift, Speedway Motorsports’ senior vice president of operations. “It gives us a challenge and we like challenges.”
Major League Baseball used BaAM to create everything from clubhouses for the Braves and Reds, complete with showers, strength and conditioning rooms, coach and trainers’ offices and batting cages. They constructed grandstands down both base lines with broadcast booths.
Pit walls were taken down and now have to be rebuilt. The transformation to a baseball diamond in the infield required 17,500 tons of gravel to level the infield, then 340 tons of Pennsylvania clay for the playing surface.
Swift said pouring concrete walls takes time — and then more time to cure properly.
“As soon as the last pitch is thrown, the last hit’s hit, teams do their thing, postgame’s taken care of, pads will start coming off the wall, and they’ll work through the night to basically start disassembling so we can reassemble for the NASCAR race,” Swift said.
Some of the gravel will be used in Bristol’s parking lots. Swift said they have found groups to help use some of the materials to help people still recovering from the damages left by Hurricane Helene. That includes 2x4s and plywood used for the grandstands.
“A lot of stuff is going to go to good use as far as the rebuild portion,” Swift said. “We just need to get it out of the way so we can put back asphalt and concrete.”
This new renovation schedule has a couple of days built in for protection. The target date for being finished is Sept. 7.
“There may still be some paint drying whenever they roll in with the Goodyear haulers, but we’ll definitely shoot for (Sept. 7),” Swift said.
Bristol hosted a college football game in 2016 that drew 156,990. Now the NHL might be in Bristol’s future after Sportico reported Friday that league officials would be checking out how the racetrack handled Major League Baseball.
“We’ve shown with football and now baseball being here, that things can take place and we can do the things that nobody would even think about,” Swift said.