Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) have earned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the fourteen research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $75.83.

Several analysts have weighed in on DAL shares. BNP Paribas raised Delta Air Lines to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $88.00 price target on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Delta Air Lines from $59.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Citigroup upped their price target on Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on Delta Air Lines from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Delta Air Lines stock opened at $61.52 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $50.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. Delta Air Lines has a 12-month low of $36.34 and a 12-month high of $67.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.35.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 10th. The transportation company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $15.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.65 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.71% and a return on equity of 29.93%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines will post 6.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.33%.

Insider Transactions at Delta Air Lines

In related news, SVP William C. Carroll sold 21,530 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.62, for a total value of $1,305,148.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 19,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,197,608.72. This represents a 52.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 3,431 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total value of $173,128.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 108,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,499,635.40. This trade represents a 3.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 140,240 shares of company stock worth $8,044,893 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Unique Wealth Strategies LLC bought a new position in Delta Air Lines during the 2nd quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines, Inc provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Airline and Refinery. Its domestic network centered on core hubs in Atlanta, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Detroit, and Salt Lake City, as well as coastal hub positions in Boston, Los Angeles, New York-LaGuardia, New York-JFK, and Seattle; and international network centered on hubs and market presence in Amsterdam, Bogota, Lima, Mexico City, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Sao Paulo, Seoul-Incheon, and Tokyo.