(Part 2 of 5) - Earnings Calendar (12Jan2026) - what can Delta Airlines' earnings tell us about the economy>
Earnings Calendar (12Jan2026)
In the upcoming week, several major companies are scheduled to report their earnings. Key players include JP Morgan, Delta Air Lines, BNY Mellon, Wells Fargo, Citibank, Bank of America, TSMC, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and BlackRock.
Let us look at Delta Airlines.
Airline earnings are often called the "Canary in the Coal Mine" for the global economy. Because the industry is highly cyclical and sensitive to shifts in spending, its financial reports provide a real-time health check on everything from consumer confidence to global trade.
Airline earnings act as an economic barometer. Leisure demand reflects consumer spending power, while premium bookings signal corporate confidence. Air cargo volumes track global trade and supply chain health. Additionally, rising operational costs like fuel and wages provide a real-time window into broader inflationary pressures.
Focusing on Delta Air Lines, technical analysts have issued a “strong buy” recommendation for the stock. This aligns with broader analyst sentiment, as the current price target stands at $78.28, indicating a potential upside of 8.25%. Over the past year, Delta’s stock price has increased by 9.3%.
Financial Performance Over the Last Decade
Delta Air Lines has demonstrated substantial growth and resilience over the past ten years. The company’s revenue increased from $40.7 billion in 2015 to $61.6 billion in 2024. Notably, Delta managed to recover from the significant downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw the annual revenue drop to $19 billion in 2020.
Gross profit also rose during this period, growing from $14.8 billion in 2015 to $16.5 billion in 2024. However, it is important to note that the gross margin has declined from above 30% in the mid-2010s to approximately 24% over the last three years.
Operating profit experienced a decrease, falling from $7.8 billion in 2015 to $5.995 billion in 2024. Earnings per share (EPS) were $5.63 in 2015 and ended at $5.33 in 2024, with the highest EPS recorded in 2019 at $7.30.
The company currently has a price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of 10.2, making the stock appear attractive. The gross profit margin, based on a ten-year median, stands at 27.4%, while the free cash flow (FCF) margin is 3.5%. However, there is some concern regarding the company’s debt-to-equity ratio, which is at 1.3.
For the upcoming earnings release, the consensus forecast for Delta Air Lines is earnings per share (EPS) of $1.53 and revenue of $14.72 billion.
Its lack of profitability and debt are concerning. Based on the above data, this is one stock that we can monitor.
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