BNP Paribas Exane Has Lowered Expectations for Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Stock Price

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Exane lowered its price target on Delta to $81 from $85 while keeping an "outperform" rating, implying about a 13.3% upside from current levels.
• Analyst consensus remains mildly positive with an average target of $79.10 and an overall rating of "Moderate Buy" (1 Strong Buy, 23 Buy, 2 Hold).
• Delta recently beat estimates with Q1 EPS of $0.64 versus $0.61 expected and revenue of $14.20 billion, up 9.4% year-over-year, with a net margin of 6.87% and ROE of 20.28%.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) had its price target lowered by BNP Paribas Exane from $85.00 to $81.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the transportation company's stock. BNP Paribas Exane's price objective indicates a potential upside of 13.33% from the company's current price.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Delta Air Lines from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $73.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $79.10.

Delta Air Lines Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of DAL stock opened at $71.47 on Tuesday. Delta Air Lines has a 12 month low of $39.59 and a 12 month high of $76.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $46.96 billion, a PE ratio of 10.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.31. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $66.45 and a 200-day moving average of $65.48.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $14.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.46 earnings per share. Delta Air Lines's quarterly revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Delta Air Lines will post 5.3 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.26, for a total transaction of $7,026,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,363,448 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $95,795,856.48. This represents a 6.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John E. Laughter sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $1,074,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 54,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,893,364.09. The trade was a 21.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 353,611 shares of company stock worth $25,182,798. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AlphaQuest LLC increased its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 90.6% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 444 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Camelot Portfolios LLC purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1,983.3% during the 3rd quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares during the period. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Delta Air Lines Company Profile

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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