American Airlines Is Now Down 23% This Year: Is AAL Stock Dead Money or Due for a Bounce?

American Airlines Group shares are down 23% year to date to $11.87, lagging other US legacy carriers as fuel costs squeeze profitability. United Airlines is down 14% YTD to $95.31, while Delta Air Lines is up 8% to $74.66. The sector has held up better than American, with the U.S. Global Jets ETF down 8% YTD and the S&P 500 ETF SPY up 13% YTD. The pressure appears company-specific after American cut its outlook in late July when higher fuel costs outweighed record quarterly revenue. In Q2, revenue rose 16.3% to $16.7 billion, but aircraft fuel expense jumped 83.3% to $4.9 billion, narrowing the operating margin to 2.7% and dropping net income 88.2% to $71 million.