Experts look at a wide range of S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares for opportunities. There's one investment in particular that has attracted a lot of positive attention: Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) shares.
The ASX travel share has consumer-focused and business-focused divisions. It's currently rated as a buy by 13 different analysts, making it one of the most popular businesses among brokers right now.
Of course, being popular doesn't necessarily mean it's going to generate the biggest returns, but numerous buy ratings could be a positive sign. Let's take a look at why Flight Centre shares look so positive.
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Rising earnings expected for the ASX 200 share
One of the most important factors in sending a share price higher is rising earnings.
Flight Centre recently increased FY26's underlying profit before tax (PBT) guidance by $10 million to a range of $315 million to $350 million, up from a range of $305 million to $340 million.
The broker UBS expects the ASX 200 share to generate $230 million of net profit in FY26. UBS expects Flight Centre to increase its net profit to $281 million in FY27, $330 million in FY28, $361 million in FY29 and $385 million in FY30.
If net profit does rise 67% between FY26 and FY30, it would be a great tailwind for shareholder returns.
UBS noted after seeing the FY26 first quarter that ongoing productivity initiatives in the corporate division is "driving efficiency improvements", with a 7% rise of total transaction value (TTV) alongside a 5% reduction of the headcount.
In the leisure segment, the business is seeing some "greenshoots" emerging in US bookings from Australia. October was the first month of growth since the quarter of the three months to March 2025.
UBS is also expecting a recovery of Asia losses, with a more stable trading climate and ongoing cost reduction and productivity benefits.
Overall, UBS is seeing signs of improvement, combined with its cruise agency acquisition.
Acquisition
The ASX 200 travel share recently announced the acquisition of Iglu, with $200 million upfront and $54 million in performance-based targets. It's the leading cruise agency in the UK.
This has diversified the leisure segment, both from increasing the northern hemisphere exposure and a bigger shift into the cruise subsegment (which now represents around $2 billion of total transaction value (TTV)).
The acquisition could boost earnings per share (EPS) by around 5% to 6% in FY27 and FY28, assuming the cruise division grows at 7% per annum.
While the negative shift in the outlook for Australian interest rates is a negative for leisure, new business wins for the corporate segment has arguably increased, according to UBS, and ongoing productivity initiatives "should continue to drive efficiency improvements".
The acquisition is expected to deliver synergies for Flight Centre, including supplier leverage, procurement and operational efficiencies.
Low valuation
According to UBS, the ASX 200 share could generate $1.08 of EPS in FY26 and $1.37 in FY27.
That means the business is currently trading at 14x FY26's estimated earnings and 11x FY27's estimated earnings.
UBS currently has a price target of $16.45 on the ASX travel share, implying a possible rise of close to 10% within the next year.
