Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) Stock Has Average Price Target of $99.65

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-four research firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and twenty-two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $99.65.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $105.00 to $102.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Evercore lifted their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th.

Key Stories Impacting Delta Air Lines

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong airline-sector outlook: United Airlines’ forecast for record revenue helped lift the broader airline group, including Delta. The outlook suggests resilient travel demand may offset some pressure from elevated fuel expenses. United Airlines revenue forecast article
• Positive Sentiment: Fuel-cost relief supported sentiment: A pullback in crude oil prices improved the near-term margin outlook for airlines. Delta previously indicated that fuel was the primary reason it reduced full-year earnings expectations, making any further energy-market relief potentially beneficial. Why Delta Air Lines stock is up today
• Positive Sentiment: Potential fleet and valuation catalysts: Boeing’s certification of the 737 MAX 10 removes a delivery bottleneck affecting some of Delta’s aircraft orders and could support fleet modernization over time. Analysts tracked in the coverage have a median price target of $105, well above the recent share price near $78. Boeing 737 MAX 10 approval article
• Neutral Sentiment: Demand remains constructive but guidance was reset: Delta expects fourth-quarter revenue growth of roughly 20%, although its latest quarterly EPS and revenue slightly missed estimates and full-year earnings guidance was reduced because of fuel costs.
• Negative Sentiment: Fuel and insider-selling risks persist: Higher fuel prices could continue to compress margins, while the cited insider-trading data showed six open-market sales and no purchases during the past six months. These factors may limit the stock’s upside if airline cost pressures intensify. Delta insider trading data

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DAL opened at $77.71 on Friday. Delta Air Lines has a fifty-two week low of $55.03 and a fifty-two week high of $95.68. The business has a 50-day moving average of $81.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $80.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 9th. The transportation company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.77 by ($0.05). Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 16.83% and a net margin of 4.58%. The company had revenue of $17.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.71 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 21.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Delta Air Lines has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.150-1.650 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.600 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Delta Air Lines will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.2150 per share. This represents a $0.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 15th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio is 17.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Steven Sear sold 40,460 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.55, for a total value of $3,785,033.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 104,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,766,994.20. The trade was a 27.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Peter Carter sold 39,900 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the president directly owned 424,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,488,977.92. This represents a 8.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 356,726 shares of company stock valued at $33,081,037 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Markowski Investments bought a new position in Delta Air Lines during the second quarter worth $27,000. Timbuktu Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Delta Air Lines by 195.9% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 358 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Pension & Wealth Management Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Atlas Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines, Inc is a major U.S. airline headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The company provides scheduled passenger air transportation to destinations across the United States and international markets, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, Canada, Africa and the Caribbean. Delta operates through a network of hubs and focus cities, offering service under the Delta brand and through regional partners operating as Delta Connection.

In addition to passenger flights, Delta provides air cargo transportation and related logistics services.