easyJet's third quarter revenue jumps on capacity expansion

easyJet achieved a 10.5 per cent rise in third quarter revenue to 1.14bn pounds, bolstered by an increase in capacity and growth in revenue per seat.Europe's low-cost airline boosted its capacity by 3.6% and improved revenue per seat by 6.7% on a reported basis to £61.44 in the three months to end of June.The load factor fell 0.9 percentage points to 88.2%, reflecting the timing of Easter which fell on March 31st, a week earlier than in 2012.The company carried 16.4m passengers, up 2.6% compared to last year.Cost per seat, excluding fuel, was up 6.4% on a reported basis, due to significant increases in airport charges at regulated airports, particularly in Spain and Italy, together with higher than anticipated disruption.Cash and money market deposits came to £1.4bn and net cash was £714m at the end of June. "easyJet has delivered a strong performance in the third quarter in a benign capacity environment for easyJet," said Chief Executive, Carolyn McCall. "The strong performance demonstrates further progress against the easyJet strategy and the commitment to deliver returns and profitable growth for shareholders."easyJet has made arrangements for new aircraft through to 2022 and has reached an agreement to acquire Flybe's 25 slots at Gatwick from summer 2014 for a total consideration of £20m, subject to shareholder approval.The carrier expects profit before tax for the year to September 30th 2013 to be between £450m and £480m.RD