American Airlines (AAL) Q1 2026 earnings

American Airlines It cut its 2026 earnings forecast on Thursday, becoming the latest airline to lower its outlook after rising fuel costs added billions of dollars to expenses this year.

American said it could post an adjusted per-share loss of 40 cents to $1.10 per share, below forecast earnings of $1.70 to $2.70 per share in January, but Wall Street analysts have been lowering their forecasts for the sector since the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran this year.

Airlines are either lowering their full-year forecasts or delaying providing further guidance because of volatility in jet fuel prices since the start of the war. Fuel is generally the largest expense after labor.

Carriers are also pulling back capacity expansion plans to cut costs, which could increase airfares when fewer seats are sold. Airline executives said despite the higher prices, customers were still making reservations.

American said the midpoint of its 2026 earnings forecast remained flat year over year, despite a $4 billion increase in fuel costs.

“We’ll recover, but the key to that is just the balance of supply and demand,” CEO Robert Isom told CNBC’s Phil LeBeau on Thursday. “We will be quick to make sure we arrange our flight if necessary.”

American expects to increase capacity by up to 6% in the second quarter and estimates revenue will grow between 13.5% and 16.5% annually, in line with analyst estimates. Its adjusted earnings outlook ranged from a loss of 20 cents to a gain of 20 cents per share.

“America had record revenue in the first quarter, and we’re on track for a new record in the second quarter,” Isom said in the earnings call. “This revenue momentum is a result of our focus on our four business priorities: elevating the customer experience, growing our global network, increasing premium revenue and leading in loyalty.”

Here’s what America reported in the first quarter compared to Wall Street estimates compiled by LSEG:

• Loss per share: Adjusted 40 cents versus expected loss of 47 cents
• Revenues: 13.79 billion dollars is expected against the expectation of 13.91 billion dollars

In the first quarter, American reported a net loss of $382 million, or 58 cents per share, compared to a net loss of $473 million, or 72 cents, a year earlier. Adjusting for one-time items, the company reported a loss of 40 cents per share.

First-quarter revenue of $13.91 billion was up 10.8% from the previous year’s revenue of $12.55 billion.

— CNBC’s Michele Luhn contributed to this report.