Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) CEO Sells $19,164,128.00 in Stock

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) CEO Edward Bastian sold 206,510 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.80, for a total value of $19,164,128.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,363,448 shares in the company, valued at $126,527,974.40. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Shares of DAL stock opened at $91.31 on Friday. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.88 and a fifty-two week high of $95.68. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $86.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market cap of $60.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.14, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.31.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 9th. The transportation company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 17.52% and a net margin of 5.79%.The firm’s revenue was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.10 EPS. Analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th were paid a $0.215 dividend. This represents a $0.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. This is a boost from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 9th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Delta Air Lines by 33.5% during 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 during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $178,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $555,000. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 102.2% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 7,825 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $385,000 after acquiring an additional 357,825 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 10.6% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 58,129 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,859,000 after purchasing an additional 5,564 shares in the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on DAL. Raymond James Financial downgraded shares of Delta Air Lines from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $80.00 to $104.00 in a report on Monday, July 6th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $112.00 target price on Delta Air Lines in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Delta Air Lines from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Delta Air Lines from $106.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Twenty-three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.40.

Trending Headlines about 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

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.