Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $100.4043.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on DAL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Evercore boosted their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $93.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd.

Key Stories Impacting Delta Air Lines

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

• Positive Sentiment: Delta’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with earnings per share of $1.56 versus the $1.49 consensus and revenue of $17.67 billion versus estimates of $17.43 billion. Revenue increased 18.7% year over year, supporting the view that demand and pricing remain solid.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains favorable: 23 analysts rate DAL a Buy and two rate it Hold, with an average price target of $100.40. Recent target increases from JPMorgan, UBS, Argus and other firms suggest additional upside from current levels.
• Positive Sentiment: LATAM Airlines’ earnings beat, driven by stronger passenger and cargo revenue, indicates resilient international travel demand. LATAM’s improved 2026 outlook could reinforce expectations for healthy traffic and premium revenue across the airline industry. LTM Q2 Earnings Beat on Strong Passenger and Cargo Revenues
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate customers are resisting restrictive, low-priced business- and premium-economy fares because flexibility to change flights is considered more valuable than the initial discount. This could limit Delta’s ability to expand revenue through stripped-down premium products, although it may preserve demand for higher-priced flexible fares. Companies scoff at airlines’ cheapest business class tickets
• Negative Sentiment: Several insiders sold substantial positions after DAL’s sharp advance, including CEO Edward Bastian’s roughly $19.2 million sale, along with transactions by executives and directors. While such sales may reflect diversification or compensation, their timing and scale can pressure investor sentiment. Delta Air Lines CEO Edward Bastian Sells Company Shares Worth $19.2 Million
• Negative Sentiment: Copa Holdings’ earnings decline caused by higher jet-fuel costs highlights the airline industry’s vulnerability to energy prices and margin compression. Separately, concerns about the Iran war may increase geopolitical and fuel-cost risk for airlines, even though the cited analyst downgrade directly targets JetBlue rather than Delta. Copa Holdings Q2 Earnings Miss on Higher Fuel Costs, Revenues Lag

Delta Air Lines Trading Down 0.7%

Delta Air Lines stock opened at $91.31 on Monday. Delta Air Lines has a 12-month low of $52.88 and a 12-month high of $95.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.31. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $86.47 and a 200 day moving average of $74.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 9th. The transportation company reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.07. The business 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%. The company’s revenue was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Delta Air Lines will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th were issued a dividend of $0.215 per share. This is a boost from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is currently 14.26%.

Insider Activity

In other news, President Peter W. Carter sold 39,900 shares of Delta Air Lines 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 sale, the president directly owned 424,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,488,977.92. The trade was a 8.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.72, for a total value of $3,245,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 95,025 shares in the company, valued at $8,810,718. This represents a 26.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 401,436 shares of company stock valued at $36,617,497. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of DAL. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 107,173 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $7,438,000 after buying an additional 19,829 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Delta Air Lines by 53.2% during the 4th quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 92,142 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,395,000 after acquiring an additional 32,014 shares in the last quarter. Tredje AP fonden lifted its stake in Delta Air Lines by 1,563.4% during the 4th quarter. Tredje AP fonden now owns 466,797 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $32,396,000 after acquiring an additional 438,735 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 154.8% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 192,384 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $13,351,000 after acquiring an additional 116,891 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 720,421 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $49,997,000 after acquiring an additional 17,316 shares during the period. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by 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.