Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) CEO Sells 173,230 Shares

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) CEO Edward Bastian sold 173,230 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.00, for a total value of $12,299,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 632,823 shares in the company, valued at approximately $44,930,433. This represents a 21.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Delta Air Lines Stock Down 1.2%

DAL stock traded down $0.84 during trading on Friday, hitting $70.50. 7,438,898 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,700,161. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.19, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $66.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.61. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 1 year low of $34.74 and a 1 year high of $73.16.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 13th. The transportation company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $14.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.80 billion. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 20.99% and a net margin of 7.90%.The firm’s revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.85 EPS. Delta Air Lines has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.900 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 6.500-7.500 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Several major brokers raised price targets and maintained buy/outperform ratings (HSBC bumped PT to $80.20). Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Wolfe Research lifted its target to $83 and kept an outperform rating, signaling analyst conviction on upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs raised its PT to $80 and left a buy rating in place, adding institutional validation for the recovery theme. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: DBS raised its target to $80 and kept a buy, another vote of confidence supporting upside vs. current levels. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst note highlights Delta’s MRO business, strong free cash flow and low leverage as structural positives that could drive returns over time. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo and UBS remain bullish / keep buy ratings, and the analyst consensus skews to “buy,” supporting durable analyst demand. Read More. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks highlights Delta as a long‑term momentum candidate — useful framing for longer‑term investors but not an immediate catalyst. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Operational update: CEO Ed Bastian says the company is working to add lounges to ease overcrowding — a positive customer experience move but not an immediate earnings driver. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Q4: EPS narrowly beat but revenue missed analyst estimates and management’s cautious 2026 tone dampened expectations — the primary reason for the selloff as investors focus on near‑term growth and margin risks. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Market commentary notes investors sold off the stock despite solid results, signaling a short‑term sentiment/valuation reset that could continue until revenue/growth clarity improves. Read More.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on DAL shares. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company set a $87.00 price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Argus set a $80.00 target price on Delta Air Lines in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.97.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in Delta Air Lines by 90.6% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 444 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 184.6% during the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 572 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 1,983.3% during the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 476 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Activest Wealth Management increased its position in Delta Air Lines by 2,280.8% during the second quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 619 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 593 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

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.