Top Airline Stocks for Q4 2022

The airline industry is composed of companies that offer a variety of air transportation and travel services for consumers and cargo. Services include flight transport, aircraft leasing, hotel booking, car rentals, and travel management services. Some big names in the U.S. airline industry include Southwest Airlines Co., Delta Air Lines Inc., and United Airlines Holdings Inc.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought air travel to a near-halt. However, it is roaring back as global economies reopen and the effects of the pandemic begin to fade. Both leisure and business flights have surpassed pre-pandemic levels this year. However, surging fuel costs are weighing on airlines’ earnings.

Airline stocks, as represented by the U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS), an airline exchange-traded fund, have underperformed the broader market. JETS has provided a total return of -20.2% over the past 12 months, below the -9.8% total return of the S&P 500 Index.

Here are the top three airline stocks in the categories of best value, fastest growth, and best performance. The market performance numbers above and all statistics in the tables below are as of Sept. 14, 2022.

These are the airline stocks with the lowest 12-month trailing price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio. Because profits can be returned to shareholders in the form of dividends and buybacks, a low P/E ratio shows that you’re paying less for each dollar of profit generated.