Copa Holdings CPA is scheduled to report first-quarter 2026 results on May 13, after market close.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CPA’s first-quarter 2026 earnings per share has been revised downwards by 7.7% over the past 60 days to $4.43. The consensus mark for earnings implies a 3.5% increase from the year ago actuals. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CPA’s first-quarter 2026 revenues is pegged at $1.03 billion, indicating 15% growth year over year.
CPA has an impressive earnings surprise history, having outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the preceding four quarters (missing once in the remaining), with an average beat being 5.74%.
Copa Holdings, S.A. Price and EPS Surprise
Copa Holdings, S.A. price-eps-surprise | Copa Holdings, S.A. Quote
Let’s see how things have shaped up for CPA this earnings season.
Factors Likely to Have Influenced CPA’s Q1 Performance
We expect the CPA’stop line in the to-be-reported quarter to have been bolstered by an improvement in air-travel demand.
Passenger revenues, which account for the bulk of the top line, are likely to have increased in the to-be-reported quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for passenger revenues is pegged at $987.3 million, up 15% from the first-quarter 2025 actuals. Meanwhile, the consensus mark for revenues from the cargo & mail segment and other operating revenues is pegged at $28.1 million and $16.4 million, indicating a year-over-year increase of 9.4% and 13.1%, respectively.
On the contrary, the company’s performance in the to-be-reported quarter is expected to have been significantly impacted by rising operating expenses. Ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and supply-chain disruptions are likely to have weighed on CPA’s bottom line.
What Our Model Says About CPA
Our proven model predicts an earnings beat for Copa Holdings this time. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
CPA has an Earnings ESP of +6.17% and a Zacks Rank #3 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Highlights of CPA’s Q4 Results
Copa Holdings reported fourth-quarter 2025 earnings per share of $4.18, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.44 but improved 4.7% year over year. Revenues of $962.9 million missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $967.6 million but inched up 9.7% year over year, driven by a 12.9% increase in onboard passengers.
Passenger revenues (which contributed 94.8% to the top line) grew 9.4% year over year to $913.62 million. The upside was driven by a 10.1% increase in revenue passenger miles (RPMs), partially offset by a 0.6% decrease in passenger yield.
Q1 Performances of Other Transportation Companies
Delta Air Lines DAL reported first-quarter 2026 earnings (excluding $1.08 from non-recurring items) of 64 cents per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 61 cents. Earnings increased 39.1% on a year-over-year basis. Revenues in the March-end quarter were $14.2 billion, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $14 billion and increasing on a year-over-year basis.
J.B. Hunt Transport Services JBHT posted first-quarter 2026 earnings per share of $1.49, up 27% from $1.17 a year ago. The result topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate by $0.04, reflecting a 2.8% surprise.
Operating revenues totaled $3.06 billion, rising 4.6% year over year. Revenues beat the consensus mark of $2.94 billion, resulting in a 3.9% surprise, as demand proved resilient across several service offerings, led by Intermodal volume growth and higher revenues per load in select highway-related businesses.
Beyond Nvidia: AI's Second Wave Is Here
The AI revolution has already minted millionaires. But the stocks everyone knows about aren't likely to keep delivering the biggest profits. AI’s second wave is moving from infrastructure to implementation and these companies are at the forefront of this transition, positioned to become what Amazon and Google were to the internet era.
See Stocks Now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL): Free Stock Analysis Report
J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc. (JBHT): Free Stock Analysis Report
Copa Holdings, S.A. (CPA): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).