Delta Air Lines Continues Its Run of Outperformance

Two months ago, most airline executives were extremely bullish about the rest of 2021. A strong rebound in leisure demand led to packed planes and high fares during the summer peak season. Meanwhile, airlines saw growing signs that business travel demand would begin to recover in earnest after Labor Day.

Alas, the summer surge in U.S. COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations undermined this demand recovery. Last week, U.S. airline giants Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL), American Airlines (NASDAQ: AAL), and United Airlines (NASDAQ: UAL) all slashed their Q3 forecasts. However, Delta is set to record an adjusted profit for the quarter anyway, continuing its long run of outperformance.

Two months ago, Delta Air Lines projected that third-quarter revenue would decline 30% to 35% compared with 2019 on 28% to 30% less capacity. This performance implied a low- to mid-single-digit decline in unit revenue from pre-pandemic levels.

Source Fool.com