This hedge fund just dumped the 'big three' airline stocks, as the industry faces soaring fuel costs

By Bill Peters

Appaloosa sold off its entire positions in Delta, American and United, while loading up on shares of Amazon and Uber

Delta CEO Ed Bastian in April said that travel demand was still strong.

As airlines grapple with surging fuel costs due to the Iran war, at least one hedge fund got out of the way during the first quarter.

Appaloosa, founded by investor David Tepper, sold off its entire stakes in Delta Air Lines (DAL), American Airlines (AAL) and United Airlines (UAL) in the first quarter, which ended on March 31, the fund's latest disclosure showed on Friday. The filing doesn't detail the exact dates of the sales.

The Appaloosa disclosure didn't seem to be hurting the major airline stocks. Shares of Delta were up 3% after hours, after Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) (BRK.B) took a new position in the carrier during the period. Shares of American and United were up fractionally after hours.

Major airlines like Delta and United are chasing wealthier consumers who might be less sensitive to higher airfares. The airline industry has had to temper its plans to expand flight offerings in response to rising costs from the Iran conflict, which began at the end of February. The collapse of discount carrier Spirit Airlines also stands to benefit some rivals.

Delta CEO Ed Bastian in April said that travel demand was still strong. However, the airline swung to a net loss during the first quarter.

Appaloosa had held around 14.2 million shares of American, 475,000 shares of Delta and 465,000 shares of United.

Elsewhere, Appaloosa bought up more than 2 million shares of Amazon.com (AMZN) during the first quarter, bringing its total holdings to around 4.3 million shares.

It also loaded up on shares of ride-sharing platform Uber Technologies (UBER). The fund bought 4.5 million shares of Uber, for a total stake of roughly 6.3 million shares.

Shares of Amazon fell 0.4% after hours, with the stock just off recent highs of nearly $275 a share reached earlier this month. Shares of Uber were down 0.3% after hours.

-Bill Peters

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05-15-26 1748ET