By Kumar Tanishk
(Reuters) - Shares of Qantas rose to a record high on Thursday, a day after the Australian carrier unveiled changes to its frequent fliers programme to attract cost-conscious travellers and restore its credibility following a string of controversies.
Qantas' stock advanced 0.5% to finish the day at an all-time high of A$9.420. Earlier in the day, shares climbed as much as 1.7% to record levels of A$9.54.
The overhaul of the frequent flyer programme, set to roll out in the next 12 months, comes after a challenging couple of years for the flagship carrier, which was marked with controversies like the sale of thousands of tickets on already cancelled flights.
This move is seen as a strategy to boost loyalty among members and increase revenue from the programme. It builds on last year's revamp, which included offering access to 20 million additional reward seats available for purchase with points.
Qantas Loyalty generated roughly A$2.5 billion ($1.57 billion) in revenue for fiscal 2024, accounting for around 11% of the airline's total revenue. The programme had 16.4 million members, as of June 2024.
Under the changes, members will have access to more premium cabin reward seats and partner airlines, lowest economy reward seat fares in Australia, and be able to earn more points when flying, Qantas said in a statement on its website.
Jessica Amir, a market strategist at trading platform moomoo, pointed to the trend of holiday travel for Australians around this time of the year and the strength in Qantas' share performance over the last year.
"Around this time of the year, we see peak travel and consumer discretion, with many Australians still on holiday until after Australia Day," Amir said.
"Not only are Australians travelling domestically, but many Chinese nationals are also returning home. This increased demand for travel is expected to continue benefiting Qantas."
($1 = 1.5949 Australian dollars)