STRENGTHS
1. The Lufthansa group contains some strong brands
Lufthansa's brand and those of its principal subsidiaries SWISS and Austrian command strong loyalty in their home markets. Lufthansa itself aims to become Europe's only five star rated airline brand.
2. Lufthansa has good multiple passenger brand positioning
The airlines within the Lufthansa group occupy positions across a range of market segments, both in terms of product/service offer and national geographies. The Lufthansa brand includes premium and economy cabins, long haul and short haul and offers a full range of services.
Germanwings is in the short haul point to point lower fares segment. The growing Eurowings subsidiary, with lower unit costs than Germanwings, aims to extend the group's presence in the budget segment, both short haul and long haul, with an emphasis on leisure routes. Plans to develop a sub-fleet of reconfigured wide bodies on point to point leisure routes under the full service Lufthansa brand will address a further niche market segment.
3. Lufthansa includes world-leading aviation services
In addition to its flying activities, the Lufthansa group is a global leader in the provision of a number of aviation services. These include airline catering (LSG SkyChefs) and MRO (Lufthansa Technik), both of which are the biggest in the world in their respective fields. These activities have provided more stable levels of profit through the cycle than the more volatile flying businesses.
Lufthansa aims to increase the proportion of its revenues generated outside its core hub-based flying operations from 30% today to 40% by 2020 (this includes revenues from its growing point to point flying operations).
4. Lufthansa's balance sheet is strong
Historically, Lufthansa management has favoured a more conservative approach to its balance sheet than most other airlines. This means that it has lower levels of debt and a strong cash balance.
Although this is arguably inefficient from a financial theory point of view, pushing up its weighted average cost of capital (because the cost of debt is typically less than the cost of equity), this provides it with a welcome cushion in a downturn. In the past, this has also provided it with an acquisition war chest, allowing it to take a leading role in the consolidation of the airline sector in Europe.
5. The Lufthansa group has multiple hubs in the heart of Europe
The Lufthansa group (including its minority stake in Brussels Airlines) has five hubs: Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna and Brussels. The first four of these, operated by the group's fully owned airlines, are located relatively close to one another in the centre of the European continent. Through the coordination of schedules and pricing, this allows it to offer a wide range of destinations and frequencies. It also allows it to develop its network from each hub with a particular geographic focus where this adds to the overall efficiency of its operations.
6. Lufthansa is the leading airline group for European coverage
The Lufthansa group has a stronger presence in Europe, judged by seat capacity, than the other two major European legacy airline groups. According to data from OAG for the week of 6-Apr-2015, the Lufthansa group's seat capacity in the continent is 54% more than that of Air France-KLM and 33% more than IAG's.
Note, however, that Ryanair's seat capacity within Europe almost matches the Lufthansa group's and, given higher load factors, Ryanair carries more passengers.
STRENGTHS1. The Lufthansa group contains some strong brandsLufthansa's brand and those of its principal subsidiaries SWISS and Austrian command strong loyalty in their home markets. Lufthansa itself aims to become Europe's only five star rated airline brand.2. Lufthansa has good multiple passenger brand positioningThe airlines within the Lufthansa group occupy positions across a range of market segments, both in terms of product/service offer and national geographies. The Lufthansa brand includes premium and economy cabins, long haul and short haul and offers a full range of services.Germanwings is in the short haul point to point lower fares segment. The growing Eurowings subsidiary, with lower unit costs than Germanwings, aims to extend the group's presence in the budget segment, both short haul and long haul, with an emphasis on leisure routes. Plans to develop a sub-fleet of reconfigured wide bodies on point to point leisure routes under the full service Lufthansa brand will address a further niche market segment.3. Lufthansa includes world-leading aviation servicesIn addition to its flying activities, the Lufthansa group is a global leader in the provision of a number of aviation services. These include airline catering (LSG SkyChefs) and MRO (Lufthansa Technik), both of which are the biggest in the world in their respective fields. These activities have provided more stable levels of profit through the cycle than the more volatile flying businesses.Lufthansa aims to increase the proportion of its revenues generated outside its core hub-based flying operations from 30% today to 40% by 2020 (this includes revenues from its growing point to point flying operations).4. Lufthansa's balance sheet is strongHistorically, Lufthansa management has favoured a more conservative approach to its balance sheet than most other airlines. This means that it has lower levels of debt and a strong cash balance.Although this is arguably inefficient from a financial theory point of view, pushing up its weighted average cost of capital (because the cost of debt is typically less than the cost of equity), this provides it with a welcome cushion in a downturn. In the past, this has also provided it with an acquisition war chest, allowing it to take a leading role in the consolidation of the airline sector in Europe.5. The Lufthansa group has multiple hubs in the heart of EuropeThe Lufthansa group (including its minority stake in Brussels Airlines) has five hubs: Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna and Brussels. The first four of these, operated by the group's fully owned airlines, are located relatively close to one another in the centre of the European continent. Through the coordination of schedules and pricing, this allows it to offer a wide range of destinations and frequencies. It also allows it to develop its network from each hub with a particular geographic focus where this adds to the overall efficiency of its operations.6. Lufthansa is the leading airline group for European coverageThe Lufthansa group has a stronger presence in Europe, judged by seat capacity, than the other two major European legacy airline groups. According to data from OAG for the week of 6-Apr-2015, the Lufthansa group's seat capacity in the continent is 54% more than that of Air France-KLM and 33% more than IAG's.Note, however, that Ryanair's seat capacity within Europe almost matches the Lufthansa group's and, given higher load factors, Ryanair carries more passengers.
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