IAG profits soar to £3bn but lack of dividend and weak business travel leaves shares grounded

British Airways owner IAG has posted record annual profits but the lack of a dividend and weak business travel have failed to woo investors.

Profits hit £3billion for 2023, more than double the year before and surpassing the previous record of £2.8billion in 2019.

It came as the company, which owns airlines including Iberia and Aer Lingus, as well as BA, said passenger revenues jumped 33 per cent year-on-year to £22billion, as consumers splash out on holidays after the pandemic.

It said its airlines were 92 per cent booked for the first quarter of the year and 62 per cent booked up for the first half. 

But the return of business travel has been slower.

Overall, this meant IAG flew 95 per cent of its pre-pandemic capacity last year – in contrast to budget airlines such as Easyjet and Ryanair, which have both been flying above 2019 levels. 

At BA, capacity recovered to 90.1 per cent of 2019 levels due to the slower rebound in Asia Pacific.

In 2023 IAG airlines carried 115m passengers. 

In 2019 this figure was 118m. Meanwhile, its shares are down nearly 70 per cent since lockdown started in 2020.

Mark Crouch, analyst at Etoro, said investors had lost confidence in IAG, adding: ‘A reintroduction of the dividend would go some way to enticing new investors, while signalling management’s confidence that the turmoil of the pandemic is well and truly behind them.’ 

IAG hasn’t paid a dividend since 2019, and has a debt pile of £7.9billion.