Delta Air Lines released its financial results for the second quarter of the year. Revenues exceeded the company’s projections for the period, while earnings per share came in below expectations. Rising costs hurt earnings between April and June, although demand for air travel did not wane despite rising inflation in the United States.
“I would like to thank our entire team for their outstanding work during a challenging operating environment for the industry as we work to restore our best-in-class reliability”, said Ed Bastian, Delta’s CEO. “Their performance coupled with strong demand drove nearly two billion dollars of free cash flow as well as profitability in the first half of the year, and we are accruing profit sharing”, he added.
The company reported net revenues of 735 million dollars in the second quarter of the year.
Delta’s capacity decreased 18% compared to the same period in 2019. However, revenue was up 10%. The company reported that they anticipate capacity will continue to be lower than 2019 during the next quarter. However, it will continue to get closer to the same levels.
Freight revenues, meanwhile, reached 272 million dollars. The figure represents a 46% increase compared to the same period in 2019. Maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services generated revenues of 178 million dollars and already recovered 85% of pre-pandemic capacity.
Domestic flights continued to lead the recovery, while international services grew. Revenues from domestic connections increased by 3%. Meanwhile, revenue from international routes recovered by 81% compared to the same quarter in 2019. The Latin American and North Atlantic markets posted better numbers than three years ago, while Pacific operations saw a significant improvement following the relaxation of restrictions in Australia, South Korea and Japan.
It is important to note the increase in fuel costs this year. Compared to the same period in 2019, the price of fuel increased by as much as 41%. The situation drove up the cost per seat and per mile by 44%, to 20.89 cents between April and June this year.
Delta Air Lines’ key financial results in the second quarter of 2022 (GAAP)
- Operating revenue of 13.8 billion dollars.
- Operating income of 1.5 billion dollars, with an operating margin of 11%.
- Earnings per share of 1.15 dollars.
- Operating cash flow of 2.5 billion dollars.
- Total debt and finance lease obligations of 24.8 billion dollars.
Delta Air Lines key adjusted financial results in the second quarter of 2022
- Operating revenue of 12.3 billion dollars, 99% recovered versus second quarter of 2019, thanks to a 82% restoration in capacity.
- Operating income of 1.4 billion dollars, with an operating margin of 11.7%. First quarter of double-digit margin since 2019.
- Earnings per share of 1.44 dollars.
- Free cash flow of 1.6 billion dollars after investing 864 million into the business.
- Payments on debt and finance lease obligations of 1.0 billion dollars.
