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

Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) have received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the thirteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $61.52.

A number of analysts have commented on DAL shares. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $61.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Delta Air Lines to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on Delta Air Lines from $66.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th.

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

DAL stock opened at $49.95 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The company’s 50-day moving average is $43.06 and its 200-day moving average is $46.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.23 billion, a PE ratio of 7.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.34. Delta Air Lines has a 1 year low of $30.60 and a 1 year high of $53.86.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The transportation company reported $2.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.37 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $15.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.45 billion. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 36.02% and a net margin of 7.46%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.68 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Delta Air Lines will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.20%. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Delta Air Lines

In other Delta Air Lines news, Director Willie Cw Chiang bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $43.90 per share, for a total transaction of $439,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $878,000. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Delta Air Lines

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Rise Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 122.5% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 821 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the period. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the second quarter worth $40,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the second quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 68.7% during the 2nd quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC now owns 877 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. 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.