JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Stock Price

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. has raised its target price for Delta Air Lines from $72.00 to $85.00, indicating a potential upside of 40.52% from its current price.
• Delta Air Lines recently reported $2.10 earnings per share, exceeding analysts' estimates of $2.01, although revenue for the quarter was slightly down year-over-year.
• Institutional investors own approximately 69.93% of Delta Air Lines' stock, showcasing significant backing from the financial sector.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) had its target price increased by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $72.00 to $85.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the transportation company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective indicates a potential upside of 40.52% from the company's current price.

A number of other brokerages also recently weighed in on DAL. BNP Paribas Exane raised their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Susquehanna set a $65.00 target price on shares of Delta Air Lines and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. HSBC raised their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $64.00 to $69.20 in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Susquehanna Bancshares raised their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $51.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.93.

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

DAL stock opened at $60.49 on Friday. Delta Air Lines has a 1 year low of $34.74 and a 1 year high of $69.98. The company has a market cap of $39.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.77, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.51. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $57.17 and a 200 day moving average of $50.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.33.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 10th. The transportation company reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.09. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.24% and a return on equity of 24.86%. The company had revenue of $15.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.16 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.36 earnings per share. Delta Air Lines's revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 18,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.96, for a total transaction of $1,007,280.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 97,505 shares in the company, valued at $5,456,379.80. This represents a 15.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 45,423 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.56, for a total transaction of $2,523,701.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 131,731 shares in the company, valued at $7,318,974.36. This represents a 25.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 136,473 shares of company stock valued at $7,663,496. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in Delta Air Lines by 44.2% in the 4th quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 584 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Delta Air Lines by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,844 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. JT Stratford LLC grew its position in Delta Air Lines by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. JT Stratford LLC now owns 16,403 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $715,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Nwam LLC grew its position in Delta Air Lines by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Nwam LLC now owns 7,042 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $377,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in Delta Air Lines by 26.9% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,028 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.93% of the company's stock.

Delta Air Lines Company Profile

Delta Air Lines, Inc provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Airline and Refinery. Its domestic network centered on core hubs in Atlanta, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Detroit, and Salt Lake City, as well as coastal hub positions in Boston, Los Angeles, New York-LaGuardia, New York-JFK, and Seattle; and international network centered on hubs and market presence in Amsterdam, Bogota, Lima, Mexico City, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Sao Paulo, Seoul-Incheon, and Tokyo.

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