United Still Lags Delta But Has Big Hopes of Closing the Margin Gap
Photo Credit: United is focused on improving its margin gap relative to Delta. United Airlines
Skift Take
In the previous Jeff Smisek reign, United fell far behind some of its competitors in profitability. But that's beginning to change — slowly.
United Airlines said Tuesday it posted its best annual on-time performance in 2016, but its overall profits and margins continue to lag Delta Air Lines, the most profitable U.S. carrier.
United, which released financial results after markets closed, reported net income of $2.3 billion for 2016, with a pre-tax margin of 10.4 percent. For the fourth quarter, generally not the strongest period for U.S. airlines, United reported net income of $397 million, with a pre-tax margin of 9.8 percent.
In the past few years, United's margins have been of some concern for investment analysts, who have noted as the airline has repeatedly failed to match Delta's profitability. Delta told analysts last week that its full-year 2016 operating margin was 16.5 percent.
