Delta Q32023 cargo revenue down 36%
For the first nine months of 2023, cargo revenue declined 33% to $535 million.
Delta Air Lines reported a 36 percent decline in cargo revenue at $154 million for the third quarter ended September 30, 2023 compared to $240 million in Q32022.
For the first nine months of 2023, cargo revenue dropped 33 percent to $535 million from $810 million in the first nine months of 2022, a change of $266 million.
Adjusted operating revenue was $14.6 billion for Q32023, 13 percent higher compared to Q32022, and operating income was $2 billion.
"Thanks to the outstanding work of our entire team, Delta delivered record September quarter revenue and a double-digit operating margin," says Ed Bastian, CEO, Delta Air Lines. "Our operational reliability continues to strengthen, thanks to our people, and I'm pleased to recognise their outstanding efforts with over $1 billion accrued year-to-date towards profit sharing.
"Delta continues to set itself apart as a trusted consumer brand delivering welcoming, caring and elevated service by the best people in the industry. Our differentiated position supports our expectations for full year revenue growth of 20 percent over 2022, and pre-tax earnings of over $5 billion, a near doubling over prior year earnings."
Glen Hauenstein, President, Delta Air Lines adds: "Robust demand for travel on Delta is continuing into the December quarter where we expect total revenue growth of 9 percent to 12 percent compared to the December quarter 2022 with total unit revenue (TRASM) expected to decline 2.5 percent to 4.5 percent. Within this outlook, domestic and transatlantic trends are consistent with the September quarter on a year-over-year basis while unit revenue trends in the Pacific and Latin America are expected to modestly decelerate given capacity growth related to China re-opening and investment in our LATAM JV."
Q4 outlook
Delta is expecting fourth quarter revenue to increase 9-12 percent with operating margin at 9-11 percent and earnings per share (EPS) of $1.05-1.30.
For the full year 2023, revenue is seen increasing 20 percent from 2022 with operating margin of 11.5 percent and EPS of $6-6.25.
