Why Airline Shares Are Down Today

Airline shares were under pressure Wednesday after Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) became the first in the sector to post first-quarter results. Delta actually lost less money in the quarter than analysts had anticipated, but the airline was clear that things have only gotten worse since the first quarter ended.

Shares of Delta were down 4% as of 2:30 p.m. EDT, while shares of airlines deemed more vulnerable went down further -- American Airlines Group (NASDAQ: AAL) and Spirit Airlines (NYSE: SAVE) were both down more than 7%.

Before markets opened Wednesday, Delta reported a first-quarter loss of $0.51 per share on revenue of $8.6 billion, compared to analyst expectations for a $0.70-per-share loss on sales of $8.9 billion. We came into earnings season knowing that airlines were likely to report massive losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but investors are interested in hearing what the companies say about their outlook for the future.

Continue reading


Source Fool.com