Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $86.64 and last traded at $86.7960, with a volume of 138361 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $83.06.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DAL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research decreased their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $73.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane decreased their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Delta Air Lines currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $80.85.

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 1.3%

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $73.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.60. The stock has a market cap of $55.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 6.87% and a return on equity of 20.28%. The company had revenue of $14.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. Delta Air Lines’s quarterly revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th were paid a dividend of $0.1875 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is currently 10.93%.

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In related news, EVP John E. Laughter sold 69,304 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.15, for a total transaction of $4,723,067.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 69,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,727,497.35. This represents a 49.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Allison C. Ausband sold 9,710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total transaction of $737,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 138,854 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,552,904. The trade was a 6.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 149,635 shares of company stock worth $10,833,855. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of DAL. AlphaQuest LLC increased its stake in Delta Air Lines by 90.6% in the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 444 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Accredited Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 476 shares during the last quarter. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. SWAN Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1,016.0% in the third quarter. SWAN Capital LLC now owns 558 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Camelot Portfolios LLC bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

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.