All You Need to Know About United's Earnings Call

Demand is strong, United is happy with the size of its mid-continent hubs, and Scott Kirby still wants to crush American in Chicago.

Dear readers,

I’m keeping it simple today, with a tidy summary of United’s fourth quarter earnings call. As you probably know, United had a very strong fourth quarter (though not as robust as Delta’s). It posted a pre-tax margin of 8.6 percent; for all of 2025, United earned a pre-tax margin of 7.3 percent, about the same as 2024.

United’s top executives congratulated themselves on this showing, noting that the airline still produced $10.62 in earnings per share (up slightly year-over-year) despite some pain points: unexpectedly poor demand in last year’s first quarter, a significant meltdown in Newark during the second, and a very long government shutdown in the fourth that disproportionately hit revenue at Dulles. “If we talk about acts of God in this industry, we got walloped,” CFO Mike Leskinen told analysts.

Executives said they don’t expect those dynamics to repeat this year, and they are seeing no signs of a slowdown. Demand is strong, especially among business customers, and they are pleased with the size and scope of their mid-continent hubs, after spending much of the past seven years building them up.

If there’s a drag on earnings, it might be in Chicago, where United is wrapped up in an expensive fight with American. But Scott Kirby, in typically colorful language, made clear he’ll spend whatever it costs to win.

Let’s get into the highlights from the call.