Easyjet PLC share price continues to fall after posting its first ever annual loss due to COVID-19

LSE:EZJ continued its slide on Wednesday after a 7% drop on Tuesday following the first-ever annual losses reported by the discount airline brand that operates out of Luton Airport in London, England. Shares fell a further 0.84% as worsening cases of the COVID-19 virus spreading across Europe has put a damper on many of the discount airlines that operate on the continent. Easyjet’s stock has now fallen over 45% year to date and while it has still recovered over 84% since its 52-week lows of 410p, EZJ still has a lot of recovering to do to return to the levels it was trading at in 2019. 

The fiscal year ending in September 2020 represented Easyjet’s first-ever annual loss as a company. A serious downturn in passenger volume and tickets purchased saw the year-over-year revenues fall from 6.38 billion to 3 billion, which represents a decrease of 52.9%. CEO Johan Lundgren also announced that only 20% of Easyjet’s scheduled flights for the rest of 2020 are expected to take-off, a sure sign that domestic and international travel are still a long way off, even if a vaccine is created.

Easyjet stock price

Easyjet is not the only British airline hit as British Airways owner IAG (LSE:IAG) also reported a near 80% decline in passengers during the most recent quarter. With areas of Western Europe and the UK having been hit especially hard by COVID-19, it should come as no surprise that these companies are struggling to get by. IAG has also seen its shares drop by over 70% during the past 52-weeks, having only recently rebounded slightly amidst news of the potential vaccines.