Delta on track for 'best financial year' in company history after earnings report

Jan. 10 (UPI) -- Shares of Delta Airlines climbed significantly Friday after the company released fourth quarter and full-year financial results, which predict the current fiscal year could be the best ever for the Atlanta-based carrier.

Delta's forecast beat expectations, with the airline recording $5 billion in pre-tax income for 2024, with operating cash flow of $8.

Delta Airlines stock was up $6.49 or 10.56% to $67.90 as of 10:50 a.m. EST Friday.

The company's revenue predictions of between 7% and 9% come in ahead of the approximately 5% predicted by analysts.

The company also recorded $3.4 billion free cash flow in 2024 and is predicting that number to climb to $4 billion in 2025.

"2024 was a great year for Delta with our results reflecting differentiation from the industry and increased durability. Our people finished the year strong, delivering industry-leading operational and financial performance," Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in the company's filing.

"Our differentiated strategy and best-in-class operations, combined with demand strength and an increasingly constructive industry backdrop, position us to deliver the best financial year in Delta's 100-year history, with pre-tax income greater than $6 billion, earnings per share greater than $7.35 and free cash flow of more than $4 billion."

An earnings per share result of $7.35 would represent year-over-year growth of 10% compared to a normalized 2024 earnings per share baseline. The figure does not factor in a one-time 45-cent reduction per share in the third quarter of 2024 stemming from the global IT outage in July related to cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike.

Delta later said it would pursue legal redress against Texas-based CrowdStrike, as well as tech giant Microsoft.

Bastian on Friday said the company is basing its growth predictions on increasing appetite for travel.

"As we move into 2025, we expect strong demand for travel to continue, with consumers increasingly seeking the premium products and experiences that Delta provides," he said in the company's statement.

Delta is continuing to investigate how a passenger without a ticket made it onto one of its planes in Seattle bound for Hawaii in late December.