Shares of Delta Air Lines Inc. DAL, +1.28% climbed 3.49% in premarket trading Thursday after the carrier reported third-quarter revenue significantly above the same period in 2019, before the pandemic hit. Revenue of $13.98 billion was up from $12.56 billion in 2019. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had projected revenue of $12.9 billion. Net income of $695 million, or $1.08 a share, was down from $1.5 billion, or $2.31 a share, in the same period in 2019. Excluding nonrecurring items, Delta’s adjusted earnings per share was $1.51, compared with $2.33 a share in 2019 and below the FactSet consensus of $1.53 a share. Total operating expenses was $12.5 billion. Load factor was 87%, compared with 88% in 2019 and slightly above FactSet consensus of 86.9%. Delta said it is on track to achieve 2024 targets of over $7 adjusted earnings per share and $4 billion of free cash flow. For the fourth quarter, Delta expects revenue up 5% to 9% from 2019. FactSet consensus of $11.75 billion implies 0.3% growth. The carrier expects fourth-quarter earnings of $1.00 to $1.25 a share, compared with FactSet’s consensus of 79 cents a share. Delta’s shares have fallen 1.88% over the last three months, compared with the S&P 500 Index’s SPX, -0.33% decline of 5.91% and the U.S Global Jets ETF’s JETS, +1.24% slump of 8.15%.
