Delta beats profit forecast on strong demand as rivals battle 737 MAX crisis
CHICAGO - Delta Air Lines Inc posted on Tuesday a fourth-quarter profit that beat Wall Street forecasts, boosted by customers gained from rival airlines’ 737 MAX cancellations and what CEO Ed Bastian said was a growing preference for the Delta brand.
Atlanta-based Delta’s net income rose 8% to $1.1 billion in the quarter to Dec. 31 from a year earlier. Adjusted earnings per share hit $1.70, beating analysts’ expectations for profit of $1.40 per share, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.“There’s no question that we’re picking up new customers, but that’s not the main driver of our performance,” Bastian told Reuters, citing a strong brand and customer loyalty at a time when air travel demand continues to rise.
Delta, with 204 million passengers in 2019, generated $4.2 million of free cash flow for the year, a number it expects to repeat this year, allowing it to invest more in new technology to improve passenger experience.
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