Benzinga | Jul 13, 2021 10:13AM EDT

A Preview Of Delta Air Lines's Earnings

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) announces its next round of earnings this Wednesday, July 14. Here is Benzinga's everything-that-matters guide for this Wednesday's Q2 earnings announcement.

What Are Earnings, Net Income, And Earnings Per Share?

Earnings and especially earnings per share (EPS) are useful measures of a company's profitability. Total earnings, which is also referred to as net income, equals total revenue minus total expenses. EPS equals to net income divided by the number of shares outstanding.

Earnings And Revenue

Sell-side analysts are expecting Delta Air Lines's loss per share to be near $1.4 on sales of $6.20 billion. In the same quarter last year, Delta Air Lines reported a loss per share of $4.43 on revenue of $1.47 billion.

What Are Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises, And Why Do They Matter?

Analysts who cover this company will publish forward-looking estimates of its revenue and EPS each quarter. Averaging together every EPS and revenue prediction that each analyst makes about a company in a quarter yields the "consensus estimates." A company posting earnings or revenue above or below the consensus estimate is known as an "earnings surprise" and may move the stock by a considerable margin.

If the company were to report earnings in line when it publishes results Wednesday, earnings would be up 68.4%. Sales would be up 322.34% on a year-over-year basis. Here is how the Delta Air Lines's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past: Quarter Q1 2021 Q4 2020 Q3 2020 Q2 2020EPS Estimate -3.13 -2.51 -3 -4.12EPS Actual -3.55 -2.53 -3.3 -4.43Revenue Estimate 3.91 B 3.60 B 3.11 B 1.40 BRevenue Actual 4.15 B 3.97 B 3.06 B 1.47 B

Stock Performance

Shares of Delta Air Lines were trading at $42.85 as of July 12. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 47.36%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders can be satisfied going into this earnings release.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Delta Air Lines is scheduled to hold the call at 10:00:00 ET and can be accessed here.