Delta reports an adjusted pre-tax income of $217 million in the first (March) quarter

  • March quarter revenue and earnings results in-line with guidance
  • Record March quarter operating cash flow enabled accelerated debt reduction
  • Expect record June quarter revenue, mid-teens operating margin, and EPS of $2.00 to $2.25
  • Reiterating 2023 outlook for significant EPS growth to $5 to $6 and free cash flow of more than $2 billion

Delta Air Lines today reported financial results for the first quarter and provided its outlook for the June quarter 2023. Highlights of the first quarter, including both GAAP and adjusted metrics, are incorporated here.

“Thanks to the outstanding work and dedication of the Delta team, 2023 is off to a strong start. We provided well-deserved pay increases for our people and paid more profit sharing than the rest of the industry combined. Delta is building momentum, with the best people in the industry generating nearly $5 billion of operating profit over the last twelve months,” said Ed Bastian, Delta’s chief executive officer. “For the June quarter, we expect to deliver record revenue, and an adjusted operating margin of 14 to 16 percent with earnings per share of $2.00 to $2.25.”

Photo: Delta Air Lines

“With solid March quarter profitability and a strong outlook for the June quarter, we are confident in our full-year guidance for revenue growth of 15 to 20 percent year over year, earnings of $5 to $6 per share and free cash flow of over $2 billion,” Bastian said.

MARCH QUARTER 2023 GAAP FINANCIAL RESULTS

  • Operating revenue of $12.8 billion
  • Operating loss of $277 million with an operating margin of (2.2)%
  • Pre-tax loss of $506 million with a pre-tax margin of (4)%
  • EPS of ($0.57)
  • Operating cash flow of $2.2 billion
  • Payments on debt and finance lease obligations of $1.2 billion
  • Total debt and finance lease obligations of $22 billion at quarter end

MARCH QUARTER 2023 ADJUSTED FINANCIAL RESULTS

  • Operating revenue of $11.8 billion, 45% higher than the March quarter 2022 and 14% higher than the March quarter 2019, including a 1 point impact from flying lower capacity than initially planned
  • Operating income of $546 million with an operating margin of 4.6%
  • Pre-tax income of $217 million with a pre-tax margin of 1.8%
  • Earnings per share of $0.25
  • Operating cash flow of $2.9 billion
  • Free cash flow of $1.9 billion
  • $9.5 billion in liquidity* andadjusted net debt of $21 billion at quarter end

*Includes cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments and undrawn revolving credit facilities

JUNE QUARTER AND FULL YEAR OUTLOOK1

 2Q23 ForecastFY 2023 Forecast2
Total Revenue YoY+15% – 17%+15% – 20%
Operating Margin14% – 16%10% – 12%
Earnings Per Share$2.00 – $2.25$5 – $6

Non-GAAP measures; Refer to Non-GAAP reconciliations for comparison figures
Reiteration of FY2023 guidance initially provided in December 2022

Additional metrics for financial modeling can be found in the Supplemental Information section under Quarterly Results on ir.delta.com.