Brazil's Gol lowers 2023 outlook amid delayed Boeing deliveries

Brazilian airline Gol on Monday lowered its outlook for 2023 after reporting a net loss in the third quarter, saying it now forecasts earnings per share to stand at zero this year from a previous estimate of 0.30 real. The carrier, which operates a fleet of Boeing 737 planes, also reduced its operating margin estimates as it faces delayed deliveries of new 737 MAX 8 aircraft from the US-based manufacturer. Shares of Gol slipped more than 3% on the news, making it one of the worst performers of the day on Brazil's benchmark stock index Bovespa, which was trading near flat. The airline said it expects its EBITDA margin to come in at about 24% in 2023, down from a previous forecast of 25%, while investments in aircraft purchases were lowered to 100m reais ($20.44m) from 500m before. Renewing the fleet is important for the airline as it allows it to gain competitiveness by returning less efficient planes to lessors. But Gol said that only one of the 15 new aircraft it was hoping to get from Boeing this year had been delivered so far. CEO Celso Ferrer told analysts that the "best case scenario" would be receiving five of the aircraft by the end of this year and the other 10 in early 2024. "We have calls with them almost everyday to make sure we'll have this capacity," Ferrer said, adding that the issues with aircraft deliveries would likely lead to higher-than-expected ex-fuel costs for at least the next 12 months. Analysts at XP Investimentos called the third quarter result operationally consistent for Gol, with yield increases and cost reductions, but flagged still elevated leverage and the delayed fleet renewal as negatives.<br/>