Delta reports Q1 financial results

April 25, 2012

Delta reported a first quarter 2012 loss of $39 million, or 5 cents a share. These results represent year-over-year improvement when compared to last year’s Q1 loss of $318 million, as stronger revenue this year helped overcome higher fuel prices.

On a before-tax basis, Delta improved its 1Q performance by $355 million despite paying $250 million more for jet fuel than the same period of 2011. The performance bodes well for the current quarter and full year, Richard said in a release today.

“Our March quarter improvement in results and operations are further evidence of the building momentum we have as a company and I want to thank Delta employees worldwide for the hard work that produced these results,” Richard said in the release.

“By staying true to our plan – increasing revenues, keeping disciplined with costs, capacity and capital, running a great operation and taking care of our employees and customers - we expect the June quarter and full year will be not only solidly profitable but also another significant improvement over last year despite higher fuel prices,” he continued.

Delta’s total revenue continues to be the big driver of its improved financials. Revenue increased 9% on the strength of strong corporate travel, broad demand across all regions and the company’s commitment to remain disciplined about capacity.

“As a company, we’ve made tremendous progress in building a durable business model, which can generate profits during good years as well as bad,” said Paul Jacobson, s.v.p.-Finance and chief financial officer, in a memo to employees Wednesday. “We have more work to do, but I’m confident that we have the dedication and focus to reach our goals.”

The strong operational performance – which yielded employees $22 million in Shared Rewards – helped improve earnings and continues to help attract business fliers. Delta’s March unit revenue increase of 14 percent over last year gives it 12 consecutive months of outperforming the industry revenue average.

The airline continued to lower its total net debt, having cut nearly $5 billion in the past two years to reach $12.2 at the end of Q1. Delta should reach the $10 billion net debt level by next year as it continues to de-lever its balance sheet. Delta also funded all its 2012 pension obligations in April, well ahead of schedule.*