June 15 Reuters Delta Air Lines said on Thursday it would pay a quarterly dividend, resuming a payout that the carrier had suspended in March 2020 during the COVID19 pandemic.

The dividend, of 0.10 per share, will be paid on Aug. 7 to shareholders of record as of the close of business July 17, the U.S. airline said.

In December, Southwest Airlines became the first major U.S. airline to reinstate its quarterly dividend, more than two years after suspending it in the wake of the pandemic.

The resumption of Delta39;s payout reflects its progress on its threeyear financial plan, the airline said, including more than 10 billion of debt repayment over the last two years.

The move comes as Delta forecast that strong summer travel demand will result in higherthanexpected profit for the quarter through June.

As a condition of receiving 54 billion government assistance during the COVID19 pandemic, airlines were prohibited from paying dividends or repurchasing stock.

Those restrictions expired last fall. Delta Air Lines received 11.9 billion in U.S. assistance.

In March 2020, Delta paid a 0.4025 share dividend, which was its 27th consecutive dividend at the time.

Reporting by Aishwarya Nair in Bengaluru and David Shepardson in Washington; Editing by Savio D39;Souza and Alexander Smith

Source Reuters