I have a friend who bought American Airlines stock at 50 cents per share. That friend asked me what on earth was going on that the stock rose to just over $10 per share.

These are strange days when an airline stock is actually worth quite a bit while in bankruptcy, on hold with a merger because of a lawsuit. Strange days indeed.

The answer is that there are settlement discussions going on with the Florida Attorney General and with the Department of Justice.

The talks with the Florida AG are to build momentum and whether or not a settlement is reached there is really immaterial.

The talks with the DoJ are serious and Attorney General Holder has come out with bluster stating that the airlines would have to sell assets to get a settlement. The airlines wisely declined to make a comment.

In the world of lawsuits, he who is quiet is usually the one who is winning.

American Airlines and US Airways are very quiet on this.

Filed under: Deregulation, Mergers and Bankruptcy by ajax
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