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Delta (DAL) Reports Q1 Earnings: What Key Metrics Have to Say

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Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) reported $13.75 billion in revenue for the quarter ended March 2024, representing a year-over-year increase of 7.8%. EPS of $0.45 for the same period compares to $0.25 a year ago.

The reported revenue represents a surprise of +7.09% over the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $12.84 billion. With the consensus EPS estimate being $0.36, the EPS surprise was +25.00%.

While investors scrutinize revenue and earnings changes year-over-year and how they compare with Wall Street expectations to determine their next move, some key metrics always offer a more accurate picture of a company's financial health.

As these metrics influence top- and bottom-line performance, comparing them to the year-ago numbers and what analysts estimated helps investors project a stock's price performance more accurately.

Here is how Delta performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts:

  • Available seat miles - Consolidated: 65,542 million versus the four-analyst average estimate of 65,159.92 million.
  • Adjusted - Total unit revenues - TRASM: 19.17 cents compared to the 19.09 cents average estimate based on four analysts.
  • Passenger Revenue Per Available Seat Mile: 16.98 cents versus the four-analyst average estimate of 17.06 cents.
  • Passenger Load Factor: 83% versus the four-analyst average estimate of 83.8%.
  • Adjusted- Average fuel price per gallon: $2.76 versus $2.66 estimated by four analysts on average.
  • Cost per Available Seat Mile (CASM) - Ex: 14.08 cents versus the four-analyst average estimate of 14.29 cents.
  • Passenger Mile Yield: 20.53 cents compared to the 20.14 cents average estimate based on three analysts.
  • Fuel Gallons Consumed - Consolidated: 931 Mgal versus 925.1 Mgal estimated by three analysts on average.
  • Total revenue per available seat mile (TRASM): 20.98 cents versus the three-analyst average estimate of 20 cents.
  • Operating Revenues- Passenger: $11.13 billion versus $11.11 billion estimated by five analysts on average. Compared to the year-ago quarter, this number represents a +6.9% change.
  • Operating Revenues- Cargo: $178 million compared to the $173.27 million average estimate based on five analysts. The reported number represents a change of -14.8% year over year.
  • Operating Revenues- Other net: $2.44 billion versus the three-analyst average estimate of $2.03 billion. The reported number represents a year-over-year change of +14%.
View all Key Company Metrics for Delta here>>>

Shares of Delta have returned +10.7% over the past month versus the Zacks S&P 500 composite's +1.8% change. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), indicating that it could perform in line with the broader market in the near term.

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