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

Key Points

• Delta was assigned an average rating of Moderate Buy by 26 analysts (23 buys, 2 holds, 1 strong buy) with a 12‑month average price target of about $79.10.
• Delta beat Q1 estimates with EPS of $0.64 vs. $0.61 and revenue of $14.20B (up 9.4% YoY), and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.1875 ($0.75 annual, ~1.1% yield), signaling management confidence in cash flow.
• Insiders have been selling stock (CEO sold 100,000 shares; insiders sold 353,611 shares worth ~$25.2M in the past three months), while rising jet‑fuel costs and route disruptions pose near‑term margin and operational risks.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $79.0958.

DAL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their price objective on shares of 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. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Delta Air Lines from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. BNP Paribas Exane cut their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Argus lifted their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th.

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

DAL stock opened at $68.46 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $66.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.68. Delta Air Lines has a 12-month low of $39.94 and a 12-month high of $76.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.98, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $14.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Delta Air Lines will post 5.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.1875 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Delta Air Lines's payout ratio is presently 10.93%.

Trending Headlines about Delta Air Lines

Here are the key news stories impacting Delta Air Lines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Delta’s board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.1875/share, payable June 4 — a shareholder-friendly signal that management is confident in cash flow and capital allocation. Delta Air Lines Declares Quarterly Dividend
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst note and industry commentary say Delta and United may benefit from competitors cutting capacity in response to higher fuel costs, which can support yields and unit revenues for remaining carriers. Delta and United benefit from competitors cutting capacity amid higher fuel costs – analyst
• Positive Sentiment: Delta CFO Dan Snell was added to the board of Wheels Up, a move that reflects executive demand for Delta leadership and can be read as a credibility boost for Delta’s finance team. Wheels Up adds Delta CFO Snell to board
• Neutral Sentiment: Airline peers show mixed operational resilience — e.g., Southwest reported Q1 results roughly in line with estimates despite higher fuel, indicating the group can partly pass through costs but margins remain pressured. Southwest Airlines Q1 Earnings Meet Estimates, Revenue Beat
• Negative Sentiment: Supply disruption: closure of the Strait of Hormuz and a surge in oil to about $100/bbl have sparked a growing jet-fuel crisis, route cancellations and refunds — direct headwinds for margins and capacity planning. Low-cost airline CEO warns of looming airline bankruptcies
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple reports detail flight cancellations and summer schedule cuts as carriers respond to the oil shock, raising near-term revenue disruption and potential rebooking/refund costs for Delta. Another airline cancels summer flights, refunds available
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst caution: BNP Paribas Exane issued a pessimistic forecast for DAL, adding downside risk from sell-side revisions if fuel and network disruption persist. BNP Paribas Exane Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Delta Air Lines NYSE: DAL Stock Price
• Negative Sentiment: Insider activity: a reported significant insider stake reduction by a Delta insider may be interpreted negatively by some investors, though motives vary. This Delta insider just slashed his stake by more than one-fifth (21%)

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 100,000 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,363,448 shares of the company's stock, valued at $95,795,856.48. This trade represents a 6.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 38,600 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.05, for a total transaction of $2,896,930.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 104,404 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,835,520.20. This trade represents a 26.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 353,611 shares of company stock worth $25,182,798. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of DAL. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 137.4% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,811,787 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $958,538,000 after acquiring an additional 7,994,004 shares during the period. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter valued at about $471,532,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 1,579.2% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,673,400 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $185,534,000 after acquiring an additional 2,514,193 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 44.3% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,155,776 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $426,441,000 after acquiring an additional 1,890,521 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 23.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 9,496,296 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $659,043,000 after acquiring an additional 1,834,385 shares during the period. 69.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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