United Airlines Holdings Inc UAL

United's Premium Customer Segmentation Should Allow It to Earn, but Not Outearn, Its Cost of Capital

Before the pandemic, United Airline's strategy focused on cutting costs to expand margins, which averaged 10.6% between 2015 and 2019. In 2021-22, United announced a series of aircraft orders for up to 200 Boeing 787 Dreamliners and 500 narrow-body aircraft to join its fleet by 2032. The strategy is to replace less-efficient and smaller jets to radically increase the average number of seats United can sell on an average flight, with more premium seats and legroom for those willing to pay up, and plenty of cheap seats that the company can sell to more leisurely travelers and compete with lower-cost airlines on many of its routes.