Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) shares gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $71.03, but opened at $68.10. Delta Air Lines shares last traded at $70.3680, with a volume of 6,660,794 shares.

Delta Air Lines News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple banks raised price targets and reiterated buy/outperform ratings — HSBC lifted its PT to $80.20 (buy). HSBC Raises Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Wolfe Research raised its target to $83 and kept an “outperform” rating — the highest PT among the recent updates. Wolfe Research PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs and DBS also nudged targets up to about $80 and maintained buy ratings, reinforcing bullish analyst momentum. Goldman Sachs PT Raise DBS PT Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Other firms (Wells Fargo, UBS, BMO, TD Cowen) either initiated or reiterated Buy ratings and constructive targets, helping form a near-consensus analyst stance. Wells Fargo Buy UBS Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary frames the post-earnings dip as a buying opportunity: analysts point to strong free cash flow, debt reduction and a fleet refresh (Boeing 787 orders) as medium-term catalysts. MarketBeat Analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 earnings call transcript is available for detail review — EPS roughly met Delta’s forecast while revenue missed estimates; read the transcript for management commentary on forward demand and cost drivers. Earnings Call Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor resources: lists of top shareholders and analyst consensus show a broad buy recommendation across the sell side, which supports continued interest but is not new news by itself. Top Shareholders Analyst Consensus
• Negative Sentiment: Management issued tepid/ conservative near-term guidance, which pressured the stock initially — cautious guidance could cap near-term upside until execution and higher-margin premium travel prove out. Guidance Context
• Positive Sentiment: Operational and cost tailwinds: commentary about adding lounges and industry notes (Jefferies on passenger-weight-driven fuel savings) point to potential margin improvements if trends persist. CEO on Lounges Fuel Savings Article

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Delta Air Lines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Wednesday. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Dbs Bank upped their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.97.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $46.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.30, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $66.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.61.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 13th. The transportation company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.02. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 20.99% and a net margin of 7.90%.The company had revenue of $14.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.85 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Delta Air Lines has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.900 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 6.500-7.500 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Delta Air Lines

In other Delta Air Lines news, EVP John E. Laughter sold 23,323 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.33, for a total value of $1,453,722.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 81,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,055,523.97. The trade was a 22.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of DAL. First Financial Bank Trust Division lifted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 4,721 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $328,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 25.4% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 794 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,493 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $312,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its position in Delta Air Lines by 3.2% in the third quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 5,871 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $362,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kaufman Rossin Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Kaufman Rossin Wealth LLC now owns 8,593 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $596,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

About Delta Air Lines

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.