American Airlines Group (AAL) Q2 2026 Earnings
How Did AAL Stock React to Q2 2026 Earnings?
S&P 500 over the same 30 days: +3.43%.
Did AAL Beat Earnings? Q2 2026 Results
Yes. American Airlines Group reported Q2 2026 earnings of $0.15 a share on Jul 23, 2026, beating the $0.05 consensus estimate by 227.5%. Revenue was $16.7B against a $16.7B estimate.
American Airlines delivered a stronger-than-expected second quarter, posting adjusted EPS of $0.15 against a consensus estimate of $0.05, a beat of 227.51%, even as a severe fuel cost surge compressed margins to their thinnest levels in years. Revenue climbed 16.3% year over year to a quarterly record of $16.73 billion, edging past the $16.69 billion consensus, with broad-based strength across passenger, cargo, and ancillary lines. The headline story, however, was fuel: aircraft fuel expense jumped 83.3% year over year to $4.88 billion, with the average price per gallon rising to $4.05 from $2.29, driving GAAP operating income down 60.7% to $446 million and GAAP net income down 88.2% to $71 million. The company offset nearly half of the $2.20 billion fuel headwind through higher fares, but operating margin still contracted sharply to 2.7%. Analysts had flagged elevated capacity growth as a potential pricing risk heading into the second half, and that concern is reflected in Q3 adjusted EPS guidance of ($0.70) to ($0.10), with full-year 2026 EPS guided to ($0.65) to $0.65 amid roughly $6 billion in year-over-year fuel cost headwinds.
- Record quarterly revenue of $16.7 billion driven by strong demand across all entities and cabins
- Premium passenger unit revenue up 13.4% year over year; Main Cabin passenger unit revenue up 8.8%
- Managed corporate revenue increased 26% year over year, fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth
- Domestic passenger unit revenue growth of 10.6%
- International passenger unit revenue strong: Atlantic up 8.9%, Pacific up 15.1%, Latin America up 6.6%
- DFW rebanking reduced system misconnections by nearly 25% year over year
- AAdvantage enrollments grew over 30% year over year
- Capacity grew 5.4% year over year
“American delivered year-over-year revenue growth of more than 16% in the second quarter, exceeding our initial expectations and continuing the momentum we've built across the business. This performance reflects the strength of our commercial strategy, driven by our four pillars: elevate the customer experience, grow the global network, drive premium revenue and lead in loyalty.”
American Airlines Group CEO, on the earnings call
What Is American Airlines Group's Outlook?
American expects Q3 2026 revenue growth of 16.0% to 19.0% year over year, with capacity (ASMs) up 3.0% to 5.0%. CASM excluding special items, fuel and profit sharing is expected to increase 2.5% to 4.5% year over year. Based on the forward fuel curve as of July 21, Q3 average fuel price is anticipated at approximately $3.75 per gallon, with Q3 fuel expense up $1.7 billion year over year. Q3 adjusted EPS is guided to a range of ($0.70) to ($0.10). Full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance is ($0.65) to $0.65, reflecting approximately $6 billion in year-over-year fuel cost headwinds. Revenue momentum is expected to continue into the second half supported by strong demand.
AAL YoY Financials
| Metric | Q2 2026 | Q2 2025 | Year over year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $16.7B | $14.4B | +16.3% |
| Operating Income | $446.0M | $1.2B | −62.3% |
| Net Income | $71.0M | $599.2M | −88.2% |
AAL Revenue by Segment
AAL Revenue by Geography
When Does American Airlines Group Report Next?
Figures from SEC filings and company reports. Not investment advice.