Airline caterer DO&CO counting on revival of on-board meals after quarterly loss (updated)
12/08/2020 11:17
(Adds outlook, shares)
VIENNA, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Airline catering group DO & CO
DOCO.VI reported on Wednesday a loss for the April-June
quarter as coronavirus-related travel bans, event cancellations
and restaurant closures took a toll.
Revenues from the Austrian group's core airline catering
business slumped 86% from a year earlier in the period, its
fiscal first quarter. However, it said that there were positive
signs as more and more airlines were starting to serve food on
board again as passengers, particularly in premium classes, had
become dissatisfied with services on offer.
The outlook for DO&CO's business as a whole would continue
to be affected by the pandemic.
"In the coming quarters of the business years 2020/2021,
the net result will generally be strongly affected by the
COVID-19 situation as well," the group said in its earnings
release.
DO & CO shares, which have more than halved in value since
the beginning of the year, fell as much as 2.85% and were down
2% at 41.30 euros at 0918 GMT.
The group, which also caters for German soccer club Bayern
Munich and operates Vienna's famous Demel cafe, said further
restructuring was likely but did not give details.
In June it said it was evaluating the closure of some of its
32 kitchens located in 12 countries, where customers include
Turkish Airlines, Lufthansa's LHAG.DE Austrian Airlines and
Cathay Pacific 0293.HK . urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N2DT1XL
DO & CO reported a first-quarter net loss of 22.15 million
euros ($26 million) following a profit of 5.7 million the
previous year. Revenue dropped 87% to 32.5 million euros.
DO & CO said its restaurant business was picking up and
post-lockdown revenue at some of its locations in Vienna was
even higher than in the same period of last year.
However, the Demel cafe, which is usually much frequented by
international travellers, will be closed until further notice.
($1 = 0.8521 euros)
(Reporting by Kirsti Knolle
Editing by Riham Alkousaa and Susan Fenton)
((kirsti.knolle@thomsonreuters.com; +43 1 2530 1650 13;))