Alaska Air Stock Faces Pressure As IT Outage Grounds Fleet, Carrier Slashes 2025 Profit Outlook

• The airline has been hit by technological outages twice in the past two years, with the latest occurring in July.
• ALK’s request for a ground stop also applied to its unit, Horizon Air, according to a Federal Aviation Administration advisory.
• The carrier forecast its annual adjusted profit per share to be at least $2.40, down from its previous forecast of more than $3.25.

Alaska Airlines said on Thursday evening that it had halted operations across all airports due to a technology issue.

The stock was down marginally in extended trading after the firm also cut its 2025 earnings projections due to higher fuel and maintenance costs, following downbeat third-quarter earnings.

Why Are Alaska Flights Grounded?

"Alaska Airlines is experiencing an IT outage affecting operations. A temporary ground stop is in place. We apologize for the inconvenience," the airline said in a statement. The airline’s request for a ground stop also applied to its unit, Horizon Air, according to a Federal Aviation Administration advisory.

The airline has been hit by technological outages twice in the past two years, with the latest occurring in July.  "Unfortunately, we are experiencing an error on our system, but our IT team is working to get this resolved as soon as possible," it said on X after a user wondered if the airline’s app was also facing any similar problems.

What Is Retail Thinking?

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits about Alaska Airlines was still in the ‘extremely bullish’ territory at the time of writing.

One user said that the revenue beat was more important than the earnings miss, and a likely upside should be there for the stock.

Alaska Air’s Q3 Earnings Are A Mixed Bag

The carrier forecast its annual adjusted profit per share to be at least $2.40, down from its previous forecast of more than $3.25.

"Fuel costs are expected to remain a headwind due to ongoing volatility in West Coast refining costs," the company said in statement.  West Coast refinery shutdowns have raised the cost of procuring jet fuel for the airline amid operational issues stemming from the government shutdown.

The reported adjusted earnings of $1.05 per share for the three months ended Sept. 30 fell short of the average analyst estimate of $1.13 per share. The company’s total third-quarter operating revenue climbed 23% to $3.77 billion year-over-year, compared with Wall Street's expectations of $3.76 billion.

Alaska Air's stock has fallen 28% this year.

Also See: Target To Slash 1,000 Corporate Jobs, Freeze 800 Open Roles In Biggest Workforce Cut In A Decade

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