During the first quarter of 2015, Hawaiian Holdings, parent company of Hawaiian Airlines, reported adjusted net income, reflecting economic fuel expense and excluding loss on extinguishment of debt, of $24.7 million or $0.38 per diluted share, an increase of $25.6 million or $0.40 cents per diluted share year-over-year. The airline reported adjusted pre-tax margin of 7.4% compared to (0.2)% in the prior year period.
During the period, Hawaiian succeeded in lowering its leverage ratio to 3.6x, while its board of directors approved a share repurchase program authorizing the Company to buy back up to $100 million of its common stock.
"Producing these record results for the seasonally weak first quarter demonstrates the growing strength of our business," said Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian Airlines president and chief executive officer. "Low fuel prices and strong demand across our network combined to more than offset the impact of a strengthening U.S. dollar, declining fuel surcharges in some markets and an increase in industry capacity between North America and Hawai'i. Reflecting this performance we have announced a $100 million share repurchase program today.