Delta stock soars as it brings back profit outlook, pulling airlines up with it

U.S. stocks edged lower in early trading Thursday as Delta Air Lines led a rally in airline stocks after releasing a solid outlook for the rest of this year and new government data showed fewer Americans sought unemployment benefits last week.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.1%. The benchmark index remains near the record it set last week after a better-than-expected June jobs report.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 55 points, or 0.1%, as of 10:03 a.m. Eastern time, and the...