IAG is expected to release financial results for the third quarter on Friday. Here is what you should be aware of.

The airline holding company already reported preliminary third-quarter results on 13 October, telling investors that it expects operating profit to be in the region of €1.2 billion. Meanwhile, it said trading during the quarter was better-than-expected and forward bookings show no indication of weakness. As a result, it will make no change to its fourth-quarter guidance.

With a potential to return to profit, how have its shares fared since the update?

The stock has suffered this year (and, of course, before that, during the pandemic), tumbling 41% in 2022 to lows of 90p. However, over the last month, the firm has regained some steam, increasing almost 17%.

In a recent research note, Deutsche Bank analyst Jaime Rowbotham maintained a Neutral rating on IAG’s shares.

Taking a look at web traffic via Semrush data, IAG airline British Airways has shown signs of a recovery in 2022, with organic traffic jumping from lows of 5 million to 8.1 million in October. Additionally, IAG’s Iberia has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, hitting all-time highs (since Semrush began collecting data).

Focusing on Google Trends data, we can see a jump in search interest for both British Airways and Iberia since the start of the year.

After a challenging year for airlines (IAG included,) positive results could help airlines escape from their prior lows. We have recently seen some US airlines report third-quarter data, with JetBlue and Delta Air Lines reporting strong revenues. In addition, EasyJet said, when reporting a trading update for the year ended September 30, that demand remains strong, but it expects to report a loss before tax in the range of £170 million to £190 million.