US Airways says net income doubled in the fourth quarter as its planes were fuller and it made more money off each passenger.
The U.S.-based airline earned $37 million, or 22 cents per share, compared with $18 million, or 11 cents per share, a year ago. Excluding special items, net income was 26 cents per share, 7 cents higher than analyst forecasts, according to FactSet.
US Airways, which is in merger talks with AMR Corp., parent of American Airlines, said revenue set a fourth-quarter record of $3.28 billon. That was up about 4 percent.
Revenue per passenger, a key performance indicator for airlines, rose 2.2 percent. Load factor, which measures occupancy, increased nearly 2 percentage points.
US Airways Group Inc. shares rose 2.3 percent to $15.19 in premarket trading.
