Bank of America Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Stock

Key Points

• Bank of America raised its price target on Delta Air Lines from $78 to $93 and kept a buy rating, implying about 8.77% upside from the previous close.
• Other analysts have also turned more positive on DAL, with several firms lifting targets to the low $90s. The stock now carries a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $82.30.
• Delta reported strong quarterly results, including EPS of $0.64 versus $0.61 expected and revenue of $14.20 billion versus $14.05 billion estimated. The stock was also trading up 1.6% to $85.50 in Monday trading.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by research analysts at Bank of America from $78.00 to $93.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the transportation company's stock. Bank of America's target price would indicate a potential upside of 8.77% from the company's previous close.

DAL has been the topic of several other reports. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen increased their price target on Delta Air Lines from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their price target on Delta Air Lines from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $87.00 to $75.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Delta Air Lines from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $82.30.

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 1.6%

NYSE:DAL traded up $1.32 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $85.50. The stock had a trading volume of 856,167 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,899,508. Delta Air Lines has a one year low of $45.28 and a one year high of $87.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.42. The company has a market cap of $56.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.30. The business's 50 day moving average is $74.69 and its 200-day moving average is $70.29.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.03. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 6.87% and a return on equity of 20.28%. The company had revenue of $14.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.46 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines will post 5.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.44, for a total transaction of $2,036,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 95,025 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,738,836. This represents a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Allison C. Ausband sold 9,710 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total value of $737,960.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 138,854 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,552,904. The trade was a 6.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 149,635 shares of company stock worth $10,833,855. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Accredited Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Delta Air Lines by 1,983.3% in the 3rd quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 476 shares during the last quarter. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. SWAN Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1,016.0% during the 3rd quarter. SWAN Capital LLC now owns 558 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. Camelot Portfolios LLC bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 451.6% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 524 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines is a major U.S.-based global airline that provides scheduled passenger and cargo air transportation, aircraft maintenance and repair services, and related travel products. Its operations include mainline domestic and international passenger services, a branded regional network operating under the Delta Connection name, dedicated air cargo carriage, and in-house maintenance, repair and overhaul through Delta TechOps. Delta offers a range of cabin products for different customer segments, including premium business-class service on long-haul routes and tiered economy offerings on domestic and international flights, and it markets customer loyalty benefits through the SkyMiles frequent-flyer program.

The carrier operates a mixed fleet of narrow- and wide-body aircraft from multiple U.S.

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