Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday after The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on the stock from $80.00 to $116.00. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Delta Air Lines traded as high as $95.68 and last traded at $94.7530, with a volume of 657710 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $93.06.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on DAL. Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $75.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn reduced their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.30.

Insider Transactions at Delta Air Lines

In related news, EVP Allison C. Ausband sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.00, for a total transaction of $395,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 133,854 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,574,466. This trade represents a 3.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John E. Laughter sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $1,074,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 54,369 shares in the company, valued at $3,893,364.09. This trade represents a 21.62% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 149,635 shares of company stock worth $10,833,855. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Delta Air Lines News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America lifted its price target on Delta Air Lines to $100 and reiterated a buy rating, reflecting optimism that strong demand and stable fares can support earnings. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are increasingly constructive on U.S. airlines ahead of Q2 results, citing resilient demand, sticky higher fares, and lower fuel prices as favorable tailwinds for Delta. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: Delta is expected to report earnings next week, and recent previews suggest investors are looking for continued execution after the company’s strong year-to-date run and strategic focus on trans-Pacific leadership. TipRanks article
• Neutral Sentiment: Media coverage highlighted Delta as one of the better fundamentally strong long-term airline names, with commentary on its plan to strengthen its trans-Pacific position. Yahoo Finance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional articles simply noted that Delta is scheduled to release earnings on Thursday, which keeps the stock in focus but does not by itself change the fundamentals. American Banking News article

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DAL. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. SWAN Capital LLC grew its stake in 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 in the last quarter. Camelot Portfolios LLC bought a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 451.6% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 524 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares during the period. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 2.1%

The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $71.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.29.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $14.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.05 billion. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 20.28% and a net margin of 6.87%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be given a dividend of $0.215 per share. This is a positive change from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $0.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is 10.93%.

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.