Quarterly Report — Q1 2024
Filed April 10, 2024
Q1 2024 revenue grew year-over-year with passenger revenue leading the charge across all geographic regions, including a notable rebound in Pacific routes. The airline carried meaningful debt — highlighted by SkyMiles-backed notes and a mix of secured and unsecured obligations — but maintained undrawn revolving credit facilities, signaling adequate liquidity. Delta continued investing in fleet modernization with orders spanning A220s, A321neos, A350s, and 737 MAX 10s, positioning for long-term capacity growth while managing a balance sheet still carrying pandemic-era borrowings.
Filing details
Performance by segment
Airline
Airline segment operating revenue grew to $12.6 billion from $11.8 billion in the prior year quarter, driven by a 7% increase in capacity and strong travel demand across all geographic regions. The segment swung to $565 million operating income from a $499 million operating loss a year ago, which included $864 million in one-time pilot agreement expenses. Premium product ticket revenue rose 10% YoY to $4.4 billion, while loyalty travel awards revenue increased 14% to $844 million, with total cash sales to American Express reaching $1.7 billion (up ~5% YoY).
“Cash flows from operating activities benefited from the sale of tickets to managed corporate customers, including tickets for travel during and beyond the quarter, which grew 14% during the March 2024 quarter compared to the March 2023 quarter, led by large accounts, particularly in the technology, consumer services and financial services sectors.”
Refinery
The refinery segment (Monroe Energy) generated $2.0 billion in operating revenue, down from $2.4 billion in the prior year quarter, and operating income fell sharply to $49 million from $222 million, primarily due to lower pricing. The refinery's benefit to the airline's fuel cost dropped to five cents per gallon from 25 cents per gallon a year ago. Third-party refinery sales increased $269 million YoY to $1.2 billion on higher sales volume, but intersegment transfers and exchanged product values declined significantly.
“The refinery generated lower operating income in the three months ended March 31, 2024 compared to the three months ended March 31, 2023, primarily as a result of lower pricing.”