Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Price Target Raised to $85.00

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) had its price objective raised by equities researchers at Argus from $80.00 to $85.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Argus’ target price would indicate a potential upside of 25.29% from the stock’s previous close.

DAL has been the topic of several other research reports. Evercore increased their price target on Delta Air Lines from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price target on Delta Air Lines from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $87.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $87.00 to $77.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.85.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DAL opened at $67.84 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $66.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $64.73. The company has a market cap of $44.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.31. Delta Air Lines has a 12 month low of $38.66 and a 12 month high of $76.39.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.06). Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 20.96%. The business had revenue of $14.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In other news, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 38,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.05, for a total value of $2,896,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 104,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,835,520.20. This represents a 26.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 35,212 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.20, for a total value of $2,647,942.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 138,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,390,835.20. This trade represents a 20.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 620,550 shares of company stock worth $44,127,667 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Delta Air Lines

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,174 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $555,000 after acquiring an additional 2,302 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the first quarter valued at about $178,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the second quarter valued at approximately $555,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 5.5% in the second quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 30,494 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,500,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 102.2% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 7,825 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $385,000 after purchasing an additional 357,825 shares in the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Delta Air Lines News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results and management commentary showed resilience — Delta reported adjusted Q1 EPS of $0.64 and strong revenue/operational metrics, and the earnings call highlighted demand strength and margin actions that convinced investors the beat is sustainable. Delta Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Geopolitical relief pushed oil down — a U.S.-Iran ceasefire reduced near‑term oil risk, lifting airline sentiment and improving Delta’s fuel outlook (short‑term tailwind to margins). Airline Stocks Jump on Ceasefire
• Positive Sentiment: Refinery ownership is turning into a cash edge — Delta expects roughly a $300M refinery benefit to help Q2 profit, which differentiates it from peers facing raw fuel inflation. DAL sees $300M refinery benefit
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst actions are mixed — Wolfe Research trimmed its price target to $73 but kept an Outperform rating, signaling continued analyst support despite a more cautious view on upside. Wolfe Research Lowers Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually heavy options activity — large volumes of call buying suggest speculative bullish interest that can amplify intraday moves but also raises short‑term volatility risk. Unusually High Options Trading
• Negative Sentiment: Fuel spike forces strategic pullbacks — management said it will meaningfully cut planned capacity growth and flagged a multi‑billion dollar increase in fuel expense at the forward curve, which pressures near‑term margins and guidance. Delta hits brakes on growth plans
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue actions could hurt demand perception — Delta raised checked-bag fees to help offset higher jet fuel; this improves yields but could dampen PR and price‑sensitive demand if fuel concerns persist. Delta Baggage Fee Hike Highlights Fuel Shock

About Delta Air Lines

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.