American Airlines Just Got Hit With a Mixed Bag of News

American Airlines just dialed back its 2026 profit hopes again, blaming fuel costs that its higher ticket prices still aren't fully covering. The stock slid about 8% in early Thursday trading as the carrier warned it now expects anywhere from a 65-cent loss to a 65-cent profit per share this year—well below the forecast it started 2026 with, when it projected up to $2.70 a share, per CNBC. For the current quarter, American is bracing for an adjusted loss of 70 cents to 10 cents a share, under Wall Street's expectation of a 28-cent profit, even as it projects revenue to climb 16% to 19%, exceeding the anticipated 16.6% rise projected by analysts.

Second-quarter numbers were a mixed bag: Revenue slightly topped estimates at $16.74 billion—which American called the "highest quarterly revenue in company history," per a release—and adjusted earnings of 15 cents a share beat forecasts, but profit plunged 88% from a year earlier, to $71 million. Last year at this time, revenues came in at $14.39 billion, per Yahoo Finance. Executives defended plans to grow capacity by as much as 5% this quarter and continue a long-term push to narrow the profit gap with Delta and United, including ordering new long-haul jets and adding more premium seats, per CNBC. "While there's still work ahead, the progress we're making is real," CEO Robert Isom told staff.