Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $83.76 and last traded at $81.6640, with a volume of 11963399 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $79.39.

Key Stories Impacting Delta Air Lines

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

• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen and UBS both raised their price targets on Delta, reinforcing confidence that the airline’s earnings outlook and valuation can improve. Delta (DAL) Stock Is Up, What You Need To Know
• Positive Sentiment: UBS lifted its target to $98 and kept a buy rating, citing a more constructive sector outlook; other recent analyst notes also leaned positive for airline profits and stock performance. Why Some Experts Say Airline Profits—and Stocks—Are About To Take Off
• Positive Sentiment: Falling oil prices are easing jet-fuel cost pressure across the airline group, which is helping airline stocks rally broadly. Airline stocks rally as oil retreat eases fuel cost pressure
• Neutral Sentiment: Delta’s executive vice president Allison Ausband disclosed recent stock sales. Insider selling can create some caution, but the transactions were relatively modest compared with Delta’s market value. Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) EVP Allison Ausband Sells 5,000 Shares
• Neutral Sentiment: Delta is also working to improve operations after a rise in flight cancellations, which could matter for summer travel demand, but this is more of an execution issue than an immediate catalyst. Delta’s Flight Cancellations Have Mounted, and It’s Staffing Up to Improve

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DAL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Seaport Research Partners boosted their price target on Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. 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 research note on Tuesday, April 21st. UBS Group boosted their price target on Delta Air Lines from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.89.

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a 50-day moving average of $69.43 and a 200-day moving average of $67.72.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 20.28% and a net margin of 6.87%.The firm had revenue of $14.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.1875 per share. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is currently 10.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Delta Air Lines news, EVP John E. Laughter sold 69,304 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.15, for a total value of $4,723,067.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 69,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,727,497.35. The trade was a 49.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 20,621 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.75, for a total value of $1,500,177.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 120,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,731,818.75. This trade represents a 14.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 119,635 shares of company stock worth $8,402,855 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DAL. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 137.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,811,787 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $958,538,000 after acquiring an additional 7,994,004 shares during the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the 4th quarter valued at $471,532,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 29.2% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,270,241 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $815,726,000 after acquiring an additional 2,773,945 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 1,579.2% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,673,400 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $185,534,000 after acquiring an additional 2,514,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 44.3% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,155,776 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $426,441,000 after acquiring an additional 1,890,521 shares during the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.