TUI AG (LON:TUI) reported a mind-boggling 88% year-on-year slump in revenue in the final three months of 2020.
The cruises and package tours operator found itself in the wrong business during a time of lockdowns in its key European markets, but it is hopeful that by the second quarter of this year – the third quarter of the company’s fiscal year – it will start to receive “significant positive working capital inflow” and will move towards cash break-even.
Average daily bookings in January were up roughly 70% compared to December, the company revealed.
Group revenue in the October-December quarter slumped to €468.1mln, from €3.85bn the year before, feeding through to an underlying loss (EBITDA) of €480.4mln versus a profit the previous year of €111.5mln.
Pro forma cash and available facilities as at February 3 totalled around €2.1bn following the early redemption of €300mln of senior notes announced last month.
The company said 2.8mln customers have booked holidays with it for the summer 2021 season. TUI’s current plans are to stick with capacity levels of around 80% of what was offered in the summer of 2019 but there is scope to move this up or down as demand evolves.
Summer 2021 bookings, including amendments and voucher rebookings, are down 44% versus summer 2019, but the average selling price is up by 20%.
Not surprisingly, given the uncertainty surrounding the holidays business, the company has refrained from issuing full-year guidance.