Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Delta Air Lines' (DAL) May Traffic Up, PRASM Declines 5%

Read MoreHide Full Article

 It is a fact that woes related to passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM: a measure of unit revenue) present one of the biggest challenges for stocks in the airline space. That Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) is no exception was made clear when the carrier stated that the key metric declined 5% in May. The decline can be attributed to adverse foreign exchange movements and soft domestic yields.

The Atlanta, GA-based airline behemoth had stated that it expects PRASM in the band of 2.5% to 4.5% for the second quarter. However, Delta expects to return to positive unit revenue growth by year-end.

Another important metric, load factor (% of seats filled by passengers) declined as traffic growth was outpaced by capacity expansion. Revenue passenger miles (RPMs) – a measure of air traffic – improved 3.3% to 18.8 billion while capacity (available seat miles/ASMs) expanded 3.5%. Load factor declined 10 basis points to 85.3% in the month. The company registered a completion factor of 99.9%, with 88.6% of its flights on schedule.

At the end of the first five months of 2016, Delta generated RPMs of 83.87 billion (up 3.1% year over year) and ASMs of 101 billion (up 2.8% year over year). Load factor stood at 83% versus 82.8% recorded last May.

Interested in Avianca?

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, Delta and Chicago-based United Continental Holdings (UAL - Free Report) were among the companies interested in buying Latin American carrier Avianca Holdings S.A. .  According to the report, advisers to the Bogotá, Colombia-based Avianca have given a document seeking capital injection to the tune of $500 million to the potential bidders.

The report further stated that Avianca may be entirely or partially up for sale. The rumors caused shares of Avianca to gain value in after-market trading on Jun 2.

Zacks Rank

Delta currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Investors interested in the airline space may consider SkyWest, Inc. (SKYW - Free Report) which sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >>


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) - free report >>

United Airlines Holdings Inc (UAL) - free report >>

SkyWest, Inc. (SKYW) - free report >>

Published in