Delta Air Lines 10-Q 2023-09-30

Filed 2023-10-12. 7 sections, 159K characters. Original on sec.gov · Markdown · JSON

Cover and table of contents

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

☑QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the quarterly period ended September 30, 2023

Or
☐TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Commission File Number 001-5424

deltacra01a01a01a02a58.jpg

DELTA AIR LINES, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware58-0218548
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)
Post Office Box 20706
Atlanta, Georgia30320-6001
(Address of principal executive offices)(Zip Code)

Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (404) 715-2600

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each classTrading SymbolName of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per shareDALNew York Stock Exchange

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).

Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer☑Accelerated filer☐Non-accelerated filer☐
Smaller reporting company☐Emerging growth company☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

Yes ☐ No ☑

Number of shares outstanding by each class of common stock, as of September 30, 2023:

Common Stock, $0.0001 par value - 643,463,433 shares outstanding

This document is also available through our website at http://ir.delta.com/.

Table of Contents
Page
Forward Looking Statements1
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm2
Part I. Financial Information
Item 1. Financial Statements3
Consolidated Balance Sheets3
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income4
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows5
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity6
Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements7
Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations19
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk36
Item 4. Controls and Procedures36
Part II. Other Information
Item 1. Legal Proceedings36
Item 1A. Risk Factors36
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds37
Item 6. Exhibits38
Signature39

Forward Looking Statements

Unless otherwise indicated or the context otherwise requires, the terms "Delta," "we," "us" and "our" refer to Delta Air Lines, Inc. and its subsidiaries.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Statements in this Form 10-Q (or otherwise made by us or on our behalf) that are not historical facts, including statements about our estimates, expectations, beliefs, intentions, projections, goals, aspirations, commitments or strategies for the future, may be "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical experience or our present expectations. Known material risk factors applicable to Delta are described in "Item 1A. Risk Factors" of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 ("Form 10-K"), other than risks that could apply to any issuer or offering. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this report except as required by law.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. | September 2023 Form 10-Q 1

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Board of Directors and Stockholders of

Delta Air Lines

Showing the first 8K of 141K characters. Open the full section

Item 2. MD&A - Supplemental Information

Operating expense, adjusted reconciliation
Three Months Ended September 30,
(in millions)20232022
Operating expense$13,504$12,519
Adjusted for:
MTM adjustments and settlements on hedges21(36)
Third-party refinery sales(935)(1,134)
Restructuring charges—(1)
Operating expense, adjusted$12,590$11,348
Fuel expense, adjusted reconciliation
Average Price Per Gallon
Three Months Ended September 30,Three Months Ended September 30,
(in millions, except per gallon data)2023202220232022
Total fuel expense$2,936$3,318$2.76$3.57
Adjusted for:
MTM adjustments and settlements on hedges21(36)0.02(0.04)
Total fuel expense, adjusted$2,957$3,282$2.78$3.53
Average Price Per Gallon
Nine Months Ended September 30,Nine Months Ended September 30,
(in millions, except per gallon data)2023202220232022
Total fuel expense$8,128$8,633$2.76$3.39
Adjusted for:
MTM adjustments and settlements on hedges59410.020.02
Total fuel expense, adjusted$8,188$8,674$2.78$3.41
TRASM, adjusted reconciliation
Three Months Ended September 30,Nine Months Ended September 30,
2023202220232022
TRASM (cents)21.15¢22.18¢21.53¢21.38¢
Adjusted for:
Third-party refinery sales(1.28)(1.80)(1.38)(2.20)
TRASM, adjusted19.87¢20.38¢20.14¢19.18¢
CASM-Ex reconciliation
Three Months Ended September 30,Nine Months Ended September 30,
2023202220232022
CASM (cents)18.44¢19.87¢19.47¢20.12¢
Adjusted for:
Aircraft fuel and related taxes(4.01)(5.26)(4.00)(4.97)
Third-party refinery sales(1.28)(1.80)(1.38)(2.20)
Profit sharing(0.57)(0.38)(0.53)(0.17)
One-time pilot agreement expenses——(0.42)—
CASM-Ex12.59¢12.43¢13.13¢12.78¢

Delta Air Lines, Inc. | September 2023 Form 10-Q 34

Item 2. MD&A - Supplemental Information

Free Cash Flow

The following table shows a reconciliation of net cash provided by operating and investing activities (GAAP measures) to free cash flow (a non-GAAP financial measure). We present free cash flow because management believes this metric is helpful to investors to evaluate the company's ability to generate cash that is available for use for debt service or general corporate initiatives. Adjustments include:

  • Net redemptions of short-term investments. Net redemptions of short-term investments represent the net purchase and sale activity of investments and marketable securities in the period, including gains and losses. We adjust for this activity to provide investors a better understanding of the company's free cash flow generated by our operations.

  • Strategic investments and related. Certain cash flows related to our investments in and related transactions with other airlines and associated companies, including Wheels Up in the September 2023 quarter, are included in our GAAP investing activities. We adjust for this activity because it provides a more meaningful comparison to our airline industry peers.

*•*Net cash flows related to certain airport construction projects and other. Cash flows related to certain airport construction projects are included in our GAAP operating activities and capital expenditures. We have adjusted for these items because management believes investors should be informed that a portion of these capital expenditures from airport construction projects are either reimbursed by a third party or funded with restricted cash specific to these projects.

*•*Financed aircraft acquisitions. This adjustment reflects aircraft deliveries that are leased as capital expenditures. The adjustment is based on their original contractual purchase price or an estimate of the aircraft's fair value and provides a more meaningful view of our investing activities.

Free cash flow reconciliation
Three Months Ended September 30,
(in millions)2023
Net cash provided by operating activities$1,076
Net cash used in investing activities(131)
Adjusted for:
Net redemptions of short-term investments(1,226)
Strategic investments and related152
Net cash flows related to certain airport construction projects and other40
Financed aircraft acquisitions(162)
Free cash flow$(250)

Delta Air Lines, Inc. | September 2023 Form 10-Q 35

Item 3. Market Risk

Item 3. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

There have been no material changes in market risk from the information provided in "Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk" in our Form 10-K.

Item 4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

Our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, performed an evaluation of our disclosure controls and procedures, which have been designed to permit us to effectively identify and timely disclose important information. Our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, concluded that the controls and procedures were effective as of September 30, 2023 to ensure that material information was accumulated and communicated to our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

During the three months ended September 30, 2023, we did not make any changes in our internal control over financial reporting that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

PART II. OTHER INFORMATION

Item 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

"Item 3. Legal Proceedings" of our Form 10-K includes a discussion of our legal proceedings. Except as described below, there have been no material changes from the legal proceedings described in our Form 10-K.

Capacity Antitrust Litigation

In July 2015, a number of purported class action antitrust lawsuits were filed alleging that Delta, American, United and Southwest had conspired to restrain capacity. The lawsuits were filed in the wake of media reports that the U.S. Department of Justice had served civil investigative demands upon these carriers seeking documents and information relating to this subject. The lawsuits have been consolidated into a single Multi-District Litigation proceeding in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. In August 2023, the Court denied the defendants’ motions for summary judgment that had been pending for over two years. In September 2023, we moved to certify the decision for an interlocutory appeal or for reconsideration. Briefing related to that motion will run through mid-November 2023, and class certification discovery will commence in the meantime. Delta believes the claims in these cases are without merit and is vigorously defending these lawsuits.

Item 1A. RISK FACTORS

“Item 1A. Risk Factors” of our Form 10-K includes a discussion of our known material risk factors, other than risks that could apply to any issuer or offering. There have been no material changes from the risk factors described in our Form 10-K.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. | September 2023 Form 10-Q 36

Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities

ITEM 2. UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS

The following table presents information with respect to purchases of common stock we made during the September 2023 quarter. The table reflects shares withheld from employees to satisfy certain tax obligations due in connection with grants of stock under the Delta Air Lines, Inc. Performance Compensation Plan (the "Plan"). The Plan provides for the withholding of shares to satisfy tax obligations. It does not specify a maximum number of shares that can be withheld for this purpose. The shares of common stock withheld to satisfy tax withholding obligations may be deemed to be "issuer purchases" of shares that are required to be disclosed pursuant to this Item.

Shares purchased / withheld from employee awards during the September 2023 quarter
PeriodTotal Number of Shares PurchasedAverage Price Paid Per ShareTotal Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced PlansApproximate Dollar Value (in millions) of Shares That May Yet be Purchased Under the Plan
July 202324,298$47.3824,298$—
August 202319,338$45.2319,338$—
September 202313,392$41.8213,392$—
Total57,02857,028

Delta Air Lines, Inc. | September 2023 Form 10-Q 37

Item 6. EXHIBITS

(a) Exhibits

3.1(a) Delta's Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (Filed as Exhibit 3.1 to Delta's Current Report on Form 8-K as filed on April 30, 2007).*

3.1 (b) Amendment to Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (Filed as Exhibit 3.1 to Delta's Current Report on Form 8-K as filed on June 27, 2014).*

3.2 Delta's Bylaws (Filed as Exhibit 3.1 to Delta's Current Report on Form 8-K as filed on December 9, 2022).*

4.1 Description of Registrant's Securities (Filed as Exhibit 4.1 to Delta's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020).*

15 Letter from Ernst & Young LLP regarding unaudited interim financial information.

31.1 Certification by Delta's Chief Executive Officer with respect to Delta's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2023.

31.2 Certification by Delta's Chief Financial Officer with respect to Delta's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2023.

32 Certification pursuant to Section 1350 of Chapter 63 of Title 18 of the United States Code by Delta's Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer with respect to Delta's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2023.

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104 The cover page from this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2023, formatted in Inline XBRL (included in Exhibit 101)


  • Incorporated by reference.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. | September 2023 Form 10-Q 38

SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

Delta Air Lines, Inc.
(Registrant)
/s/ William C. Carroll
William C. Carroll
Senior Vice President - Controller
(Principal Accounting Officer)
October 12, 2023

Delta Air Lines, Inc. | September 2023 Form 10-Q 39