Shares of Delta Air Lines Inc. DAL, +3.34% shot up 2.6% toward a 4-month high in premarket trade Wednesday, after the air carrier reported a first-quarter profit and revenue that beat expectations, and provided an upbeat outlook. Net income rose to $730 million, or $1.09 a share, from $557 million, or 79 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted EPS rose 28% to 96 cents, above the FactSet consensus of 90 cents. Total revenue rose 5% to $10.47 billion, topping the FactSet consensus of $10.41 billion. Load factor slipped to 82.7% from 82.9%, as the 5.0% rise in capacity outpaced the 4.8% increase in traffic. Total revenue per available seat mile (TRASM) rose 0.1%, and grew 2.4% on an adjusted basis. For the second quarter, Delta expects revenue growth of 6% to 8%, while the FactSet consensus of $12.29 implies a 4.3% rise; EPS of $2.05 to $2.35, surrounding expectations of $2.14; and adjusted TRASM to rise 1.5% to 3.5%. Delta’s stock has climbed 14.1% year to date through Tuesday, while the NYSE Arca Airline Index XAL, -0.62% has rallied 11.5% and the S&P 500 SPX, -0.61% has advanced 14.8%.
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