Global airline stocks drop as Delta cuts profit guidance

(Sharecast News) - Airline stocks across the US and Europe were flying lower on Friday after American carrier Delta cut its earnings guidance for the full year. Delta, the first US carrier to report its fourth-quarter results this earnings season, called 2023 a "great year" in terms of the company's operational and financial performance, as it more than doubled its fourth-quarter profits on the back higher demand and record revenues.

Net income totalled $2.04bn in the three months to 31 December, up from $828m a year earlier, while sales increased 7% to $14.22bn.

However, it is now guiding to earnings per share of between $6 and $7 for 2024, under the $7 guidance it gave last year. Adjusted earnings came to $6.25 a share in 2023.

Delta shares were down 8% at $38.90 shortly after the opening bell in New York, while United Airlines dropped 8.6% and Southwest Airlines fell 4.6%, with Air Canada slipping 2.9% in Toronto.

Over in Europe, IAG was trading 2.8% lower, Air France-KLM declined 2.2% while Deutsche Lufthansa fell 1.5%.

Delta also said the fiscal first quarter would see a flat to 3% decline in unit revenues as the period includes a "headwind from higher international mix, the normalisation of travel credit utilisation and lapping a competitor's operational challenges in the year ago period", according to Delta's president Glen Hauenstein.