Delta Air Lines Reports 2018 Gross Revenue of $ 5.1 Billion – The Sun Nigeria

Delta Air Lines has published its financial results for the last quarter and full year 2018.

A copy of the report made available to the Daily Sun showed that for the full year, the airline’s adjusted pre-tax profit was $ 5.1 billion, down $ 137 million compared to what was recorded in 2017, the company having overcome about 90 percent of the $ 2 billion increase in fuel costs.

The airline said its adjusted earnings per share for the year 2018 was $ 5.65, up 19% from the previous year as the company recognized the benefits of tax reform and a 4% lower number of shares.

It also revealed that adjusted pre-tax profit for the December 2018 quarter was $ 1.2 billion thanks to revenue growth of more than $ 700 million, allowing the airline to fully recoup the increase in $ 508 million in adjusted fuel expenses and produce an adjusted pretax margin of 11%. . Adjusted earnings per share for the December 2018 quarter increased 42% year-over-year to $ 1.30. For the full year, Delta generated $ 6.9 billion in adjusted operating cash flow and $ 2.3 billion in free cash flow.

During the December quarter, Delta Air Lines returned $ 563 million to shareholders, including $ 325 million in share buybacks and $ 238 million in dividends. For the full year, Delta Air Lines returned $ 2.5 billion to shareholders, including $ 1.6 billion in share buybacks and $ 909 million in dividends.

“2018 was a successful year for Delta Air Lines with record operational reliability, increased customer satisfaction and strong financial results in the face of higher fuel costs. Delta employees are the foundation of our success and I am honored to recognize their efforts with $ 1.3 billion in profit sharing for 2018, ”said Ed Bastian, CEO of Delta.

“As we move into 2019, we expect double-digit profit growth through higher revenues, maintaining a cost path below inflation and modest benefit from lower fuel costs. Expanding margins is a business imperative and we remain confident in our forecast of annual earnings of $ 6-7 per share, ”he added.