Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts remain broadly positive: Delta Air Lines has a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with 23 buy ratings and two holds among 25 analysts. The average 12-month price target is $100.36.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Delta reported earnings of $1.56 per share versus the $1.49 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $17.67 billion, up 18.7% year over year.
• Insiders have been selling shares: CEO Edward Bastian and President Peter Carter sold stock, contributing to $33.1 million in insider sales over the past 90 days. Institutional investors and hedge funds own approximately 69.93% of the company.

Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-five ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $100.3609.

DAL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an "outperform" rating and set a $106.00 price target on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $106.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Argus set a $105.00 price target on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $78.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 206,510 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.80, for a total value of $19,164,128.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,363,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $126,527,974.40. This represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, President Peter W. Carter sold 39,900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.98, for a total value of $3,709,902.00. Following the transaction, the president owned 424,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,488,977.92. This represents a 8.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 356,726 shares of company stock worth $33,081,037. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DAL. Altar Rock LLC acquired a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the second quarter valued at approximately $243,000. Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines in the second quarter valued at $21,254,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 4.9% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 56,887 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $5,328,000 after purchasing an additional 2,647 shares during the period. National Pension Service grew its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 20.3% during the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 66,813 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $6,258,000 after purchasing an additional 11,279 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RFG Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 25.8% during the 2nd quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 5,310 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $497,000 after purchasing an additional 1,088 shares in the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 3.8%

Shares of DAL stock opened at $82.64 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $84.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.35. Delta Air Lines has a 1-year low of $55.03 and a 1-year high of $95.68. The firm has a market cap of $54.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.70, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.29.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 9th. The transportation company reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $17.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.43 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 17.52%. Delta Air Lines's revenue for the quarter was up 18.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines will post 6.23 EPS for the current year.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines, Inc is a major U.S. airline that provides scheduled passenger air transportation throughout the United States and to destinations across North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. The company also offers air cargo services and operates a loyalty program, SkyMiles, along with related travel and customer services.

Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Delta operates a network of domestic and international routes through hubs and focus cities that include Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis–Saint Paul, New York, Salt Lake City and Seattle.

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