Recession May Have Helped The Company

After losing more than half a billion dollars in the first 9 months of 2009, NetJets, a company owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, says it may see a "modest" profit in 2010.

The company says in some ways, the recession may help, as corporations are not buying executive jets, but still want the convenience that airlines can't give them.

Bloomberg News is reporting that U.S. firms may turn to fractional ownership in companies like NetJets as the economy recovers.  Meyer Shields, an analyst with Stifel Nicolaus & Co., said “This is an elaborate form of taxi, and that’s seen as less piggish” than company-owned planes. “There are times when you’ve got to get to four different cities over the course of a day, and you need a jet.”

Buffett was a NetJets customer before buying the company in 1998 for a reported $725 million. He installed David Sokol as CEO this year, who cut jobs and wrote down the value of planes.

In its November 6th filing, Berkshire said NetJets “is likely to operate at a modest profit in 2010, absent any further deterioration in the U.S. economy or negative actions directed at the ownership of private aircraft.” But the report warned that it could see further downsizing to reach that goal.

FMI: www.netjets.com