Earnings Preview: Delta Air Lines (DAL) Q4 Earnings Expected to Decline

Core Viewpoint - Delta Air Lines (DAL) is expected to report a year-over-year decline in earnings due to lower revenues for the quarter ended December 2025, with the consensus outlook being crucial for assessing the company's earnings picture [1] Earnings Expectations - The upcoming earnings report is anticipated to show quarterly earnings of $1.55 per share, reflecting a year-over-year decrease of 16.2% [3] - Revenues are projected to be $15.45 billion, which is a decline of 0.7% compared to the same quarter last year [3] Estimate Revisions - The consensus EPS estimate has been revised 1.94% higher in the last 30 days, indicating a reassessment by covering analysts [4] - Despite the upward revision, the Most Accurate Estimate for Delta is lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate, resulting in an Earnings ESP of -1.29%, suggesting a bearish outlook on earnings prospects [12] Earnings Surprise Prediction - The Zacks Earnings ESP model indicates that a positive or negative reading can predict the likelihood of actual earnings deviating from consensus estimates, with positive readings being more reliable [9][10] - Delta's current Zacks Rank is 3, which complicates the prediction of an earnings beat given the negative Earnings ESP [12] Historical Performance - In the last reported quarter, Delta exceeded the expected earnings of $1.52 per share by delivering $1.71, resulting in a surprise of +12.50% [13] - Over the past four quarters, Delta has consistently beaten consensus EPS estimates [14] Conclusion - While Delta does not appear to be a strong candidate for an earnings beat, investors should consider other factors influencing stock performance ahead of the earnings release [17]