Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Price Target Raised to $80.00

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) had its price objective increased by Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $60.00 to $80.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also commented on DAL. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $50.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $58.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $83.00 price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.75.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Shares of DAL opened at $63.34 on Thursday. Delta Air Lines has a fifty-two week low of $35.46 and a fifty-two week high of $66.25. The company has a market capitalization of $40.87 billion, a PE ratio of 8.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.33. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $55.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.39.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 10th. The transportation company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.02). Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.71% and a return on equity of 29.93%. The business had revenue of $15.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.65 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.33%.

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In related news, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 3,431 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total value of $173,128.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 108,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,499,635.40. This trade represents a 3.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Allison C. Ausband sold 7,510 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.62, for a total value of $470,276.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 58,897 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,688,130.14. This represents a 11.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 140,240 shares of company stock valued at $8,044,893. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Huntington National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 6,679 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 13.8% in the third quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 1,645 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its stake in Delta Air Lines by 16.9% in the third quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 1,412 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Total Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Total Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,357 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $374,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,198 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.