(Reuters) -American Airlines forecast 2025 profit below Wall Street expectations on Thursday, hurt by an uptick in jet fuel prices and efforts to fix a sales-strategy misstep that drove away corporate travelers.

Shares of the carrier dropped 6% in premarket trade.

The aggressive approach, implemented in 2023, focused on renegotiating contracts with corporate travel agencies and clients while cutting back on perks and discounts. The plan backfired, denting revenue, hurting the airline's image and giving rivals an edge.

The carrier spent much of 2024 rebuilding its sales strategy and mending relationships with corporate travelers, regaining some of the lost customers.

The company expects 2025 adjusted earnings per share in the range of $1.70 to $2.70, compared with analysts' average estimates of $2.42, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Jet fuel prices have also climbed sharply in the past month, tracking a rise in global crude benchmarks driven by broader sanctions targeting Russian oil revenue, alongside growing optimism about stronger demand from China.

The Texas-based carrier reported a profit of $590 million, or 84 cents per share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31, compared with $19 million, or 3 cents per share, a year earlier.

The airline's total operating revenue rose 4.6% to about $13.7 billion.

(Reporting by Shivansh Tiwary in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)