American Airlines Group Inc. shares AAL, +0.70% jumped 1.3% in premarket trade Monday, after the carrier offered an update on capacity and bookings and said it expects to reactivate most of its aircraft in the second quarter as demand picks up. The carrier said it expects first-quarter system capacity, or total available seat miles, to be down about 40% to 45% from the first quarter of 2019, compared with earlier guidance of down 45%. The company said it experienced weakness in bookings in the quarter, which it said was due to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention order to require a negative COVID-19 test for entry into the U.S. “However, as infection and hospitalization rates have materially declined and vaccine distribution has increased during the quarter, the Company has experienced recent strength in domestic and short-haul international bookings,” the company said in a regulatory filing. As of March 26, the carrier’s seven-day moving average of net bookings is about 90% of the level seen in 2019, with a domestic load factor of about 80%. The airline is expecting the strong bookings to continue through the end of the first quarter and into the second, but cautioned that visibility remains limited. Shares have gained 45% in the year to date, while the U.S. Global JETS ETF JETS, +1.56% has gained 19% and the S&P 500 SPX, +1.66% has gained 6%.
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