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Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación, S.A.B. de C.V. logo

Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación, S.A.B. de C.V.

VLRS
18
Airlines, Airports & Air Services · Industrials
Price
$7.66
-0.21 (-2.67%)
Market Cap
$879.8M
Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
Winston Score
18
Winston is worried
Weak fundamentals across most pillars.

Share count falling — buybacks

90.1% over 4y

The company has reduced its share count over this period, returning value to shareholders through buybacks.

Diluted shares outstanding: 116.6M (2021) → 11.5M (2025)

Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación, known as Volaris, is a Mexican low-cost airline that sells cheap flights to everyday travelers. It operates routes across Mexico, the United States, and Central America, connecting cities like Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Tijuana to dozens of destinations. Volaris is one of Mexico's largest airlines by passengers carried and focuses almost entirely on budget-conscious flyers.

Volaris makes money by selling airline tickets, but like most low-cost carriers, it also earns a significant chunk of revenue from add-on fees — things like checked bags, seat selection, and priority boarding. The airline operates mainly in Mexico and on cross-border routes to the U.S., where it benefits from strong demand tied to Mexican migration patterns. Its thin margins, reflected in a gross margin below 6%, highlight the main risk: fuel costs, peso depreciation, and intense competition from rivals like Aeromexico and VivaAerobus can quickly erase profits if conditions shift.

Winston Score History

Politician Trades

1 trades / 12mo

0 Congressional buys and 1 sell on VLRS in the last 12 months.

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Growth Profile

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+13.6% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Steady revenue growth

EPS Growth

-40.9% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Earnings declining

R&D Spend

$0/ year

0.0% of revenue

Below sector average (4%)

Research and development spending

Insider Activity

22.4%ownership

Insiders own a meaningful stake in the company

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

$759M cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↑ Burn rate improving

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Growth + cash flow

Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación, S.A.B. de C.V. is a rare growth stock that's already generating positive cash flow while growing at 14%. The Winston Score doesn't fully credit this transition from "burner" to "earner."

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

Each metric is explained in plain language so you know exactly what you're looking at. Start your free trial now.

Quality

Gross Margin
-0.3%
Thin — -0.3% gross margin
Operating Margin
-2.7%
Losing money on operations — -2.7%
ROCE
-2.4%
Weak — -2.4% return on capital

Negative ROIC means the business is losing money on every dollar invested in it.

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Growth

Sales YoY
+2.5%
Nearly flat sales (2.5% YoY)
EPS YoY
-299.4%
Earnings shrinking (-299.4% YoY)

Earnings per share down more than 10%. Either a bad year, or a real decline.

EPS Consistency
2/8 quarters
Earnings rarely grow — volatile business

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Cash Flow

Cash Conversion
N/A
Data not available
FCF Margin
16.1%
Converts sales into free cash efficiently (16.1%)

FCF margin between 10% and 20%. Every $100 in sales becomes $10 to $20 in real cash.

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Stability

Debt / Equity
3.18
Heavy debt load (3.18)
Interest Cover
0.29x
Dangerous — barely covers interest (0.3x)

Interest coverage below 1. Their profits don't cover the interest bill.

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Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)
N/M
Negative earnings — P/E not meaningful
P/E vs Forward
N/A
not available
Data not available

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Dividends

Not applicable for this business.
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