United's turnaround wobbles after airline fare war jolts investors

Last year, United soared 27%, surpassing rivals as investors cheered a new management team’s turnaround plan. This year, shares are down 20%, the worst in the pack. The growing knock against United is that it’s trying to do too much, too fast. It’s growing aggressively. It’s waging fare battles against discounters, hindering a rebound in pricing power. It botched the rollout of a no-frills product designed to limit the pain from low-cost competition. The stock drop is adding to pressure on CEO Oscar Munoz and President Scott Kirby as they advance a $4.8b initiative to boost revenue, trim costs and catch up with the profit margins of Delta. While they have warned that the turnaround’s benefits won’t fully materialize until 2020, investors are losing patience as the company’s recent moves have undermined ticket prices and shares. “This is the right long-term strategy,” said John Tompkins, the founder of Tyvor Capital. “But what does that mean in the near term?” Munoz and Kirby have cautioned that the benefits of their plan will take time to show up in the company’s results. “We continue to execute on the commitments we made to our investors, our customers and our employees, and we are making the right decisions today for the long-term success of United Airlines,” a spokeswoman said.<br/>