Stock Market & Financial Investment News

News Breaks January 18, 2013 11:11 EDT DAL Earnings Preview: Delta Air Lines nears 52-week high ahead of Q4 report Delta Air Lines (DAL) is expected to report Q4 earnings on Tuesday, January 22 before the market open with a conference call scheduled for 10:00 am ET. Delta Air Lines is a global provider of air transportation for passengers and cargo... EXPECTATIONS: Analysts are looking for EPS of 28c on revenue of $8.58B, according to First Call. The consensus range for EPS is 26c-31c on revenue of $8.49B-$8.81B... LAST QUARTER: Delta reported Q3 EPS of 90c against estimates for 91c on revenue of $9.92B against estimates for $9.97B. During its Q3 earnings call, the company said costs had increased faster than expected. On December 11, Delta announced a joint venture with Virgin Atlantic, acquiring a 49% stake in the company for $360M. CEO Richard Anderson said, "there's no more important market than the U.S.-Heathrow market." On December 12 during its Investor Day, Anderson forecast a $1.6B profit for the year and said he expects 2013 to be "a really solid improvement" over 2012. Net profit in Q4 was seen at $200M-$250M with operating margin of 5%-6%, passenger unit revenue up 3%-4% and system capacity down 1%-2%. STREET RESEARCH: Street research has been mostly positive in the weeks leading up to Delta's Q4 earnings report. Negative sentiment came on October 26 when Imperial Capital lowered its price target on Delta to $19 from $24, and on December 11, when Deutsche Bank removed it from their short term buy list. PRICE ACTION: Delta shares dipped modestly following the company's Q3 report. However, since mid-November, the stock has been on a tear, gaining about 44% and making a fresh 52-week high of $14.11 in the process. In morning trading ahead of Tuesday's Q4 report, Delta’s shares are down over 1% to $13.64. News For DAL From The Last 14 Days Check below for free stories on DAL the last two weeks. Sign up for a free trial to see the rest of the stories you've been missing. May 16, 2013 08:28 EDT DAL EU to decide on Delta, Virgin deal next month, Reuters reports EU antitrust regulators will decide by June 20 whether to clear a bid by Delta Air Lines for a 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic, reports Reuters. Reference Link May 15, 2013 09:29 EDT DAL Delta Air Lines says expects 'record' June quarter Subscribe for More Information May 14, 2013 07:17 EDT DAL BofA/Merrill to host a conference Subscribe for More Information May 10, 2013 06:47 EDT DAL Delta says airlines have new priorities, NY Times reports Delta Air Lines' bright, spacious new terminal at New York's Kennedy Airport reflects airlines' new emphasis on better amenities and service, Delta stated, according to the New York Times. The airlines, whose finances have improved, are no longer competing primarily based on price, the newspaper stated. Reference Link May 9, 2013 10:53 EDT DAL Gol Linhas, Delta expand codeshare agreement Subscribe for More Information May 8, 2013 12:20 EDT DAL On The Fly: Midday Wrap Subscribe for More Information 12:03 EDT DAL Delta Air Lines price target raised to $23 from $20 at Imperial Capital Imperial Capital raised its price target for Delta Air Lines after the company established a dividend and announced a share repurchase program. The firm keeps an Outperform rating on the stock. 09:24 EDT DAL On The Fly: Pre-market Movers UP AFTER EARNINGS: Myriad Genetics (MYGN), up 9%... Electronic Arts (EA), up 7.4%... Cognizant (CTSH), up 5.2%. ALSO HIGHER: Whole Foods (WFM), up 8.5% after earnings, raising guidance, announcing two-for-one stock split... BlackBerry (BBRY), up 2% after Macquarie says stock setting up for bounce and Jefferies says Q10 demand remains robust... Delta (DAL), up 0.7% after initiating 6c dividend, authorizing $500M share buyback. DOWN AFTER EARNINGS: ValueClick (VCLK), down 20%... Axiall (AXLL), down 8.4%... Zillow (Z), down 5.1%... SodaStream (SODA), down 6%... Symantec (SYMC), down 5.8%... AOL (AOL), down 4.6%. ALSO LOWER: Fusion-io (FIO), down 26% after resignations of CEO, Chief Marketing Officer. 08:04 EDT DAL Delta Air Lines announces capital deployment program Subscribe for More Information 08:02 EDT DAL Delta Air Lines board authorizes $500M share repurchase program The program will be completed no later than June 30, 2016. 08:02 EDT DAL Delta Air Lines initiates quarterly dividend of 6c Subscribe for More Information 05:44 EDT DAL U.S. airlines' restructuring means less routes, WSJ reports A decade of restructuring in the U.S. airline industry has resulted in a sharp reduction in air service that is curtailing traveler choice and some local economies even as it improves the industry's health, an MIT study shows, reports the Wall Street Journal. From 2007 through last year, U.S. airlines cut the number of scheduled domestic flights by 14%. The number of seats offered fell by slightly less, as airlines pushed passengers onto bigger planes, says the study. Reference Link Sign up for a free trial to see the rest of the stories you've been missing.