Air Canada: Is AC stock a good investment ahead of earnings report?

Stocks of national airline Air Canada (TSX:AC) jumped four per cent to close at C$ 26.95 apiece on Monday, July 5.

The surge came after Air Canada announced the launch of the sole non-stop flight between Montreal and Kelowna.

The flights are set to operate three times a week and might later be increased to five times a week in August this year. Air Canada will be using the fuel-efficient Airbus A220-300 for the newest domestic route and the plane will feature an economy and a business class.

In an attempt to attract more passengers, Air Canada said that the flight will have a free in-flight entertainment facility for each seat, Wi-Fi features and other facilities.

The national carrier is also set to release the earnings report for its second quarter on Friday, July 23, which could also be impacting Air Canada share prices.

Is Air Canada (TSX:AC) stock worth a buy?

After a marginal decline of 0.6 per cent in the last three months, it seems that the Canadian carrier is slowly gaining momentum. The aviation stock grew four per cent in the past week to outperform the Toronto Stock Exchange 300 Composite Index's relative growth of 3.8 per cent.

The COVID-19 pandemic was a major shock for the flagship carrier as the airlines incurred heavy losses since March last year. However, the easing of public health restrictions and resumption of flights might propel Air Canada to its pre-pandemic levels.

The pandemic is not the first time when a crisis troubled airlines worldwide. During the 2003 financial crisis, Air Canada had to file for bankruptcy for the first time ever. It also almost went defunct after the 2008 global financial crisis. However, it managed to bounce back every time and keep the investors interested in its stock.

1-year chart of stock performance, volume and moving average exponential of Air Canada (Source: Refinitiv)

As per TMX data, Air Canada's present market cap is C$ 9.64 billion and its 30-day average trading volume is 3.3 million.

In the first quarter of 2021, Air Canada had operating revenues of C$ 729 million, as compared to C$ 3.7 billion in Q1 2020. From C$ 433 million in the first quarter of 2020, its operating loss increased to C$ 1.05 billion in Q1 2021.

Those interested in AC stock could use the present price as an entry point ahead of the Q2 results.

The above constitutes a preliminary view and any interest in stocks should be evaluated further from investment point of view.