Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Updates Q3 Earnings Guidance

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) updated its third quarter earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of $1.70-2.00 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of $2.04. The company issued revenue guidance of +2-4% yr/yr to ~$14.84-15.13 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $15.36 billion. Delta Air Lines also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 6.000-7.000 EPS.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on DAL. Morgan Stanley restated an overweight rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. HSBC began coverage on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research report on Monday, May 13th. They issued a buy rating and a $72.80 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Buy and an average price target of $60.30.

Delta Air Lines Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of DAL stock traded down $1.83 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $45.03. 33,837,314 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,653,534. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $50.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.48. Delta Air Lines has a 1-year low of $30.60 and a 1-year high of $53.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.06 billion, a PE ratio of 5.53, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.35.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The transportation company reported $2.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.37 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $15.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.45 billion. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 41.89% and a net margin of 8.48%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.68 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines will post 6.55 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 30th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. This is a positive change from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 30th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio is 5.14%.

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In related news, Director Willie Cw Chiang purchased 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $49.50 per share, with a total value of $495,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,000. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Delta Air Lines news, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 4,846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.30, for a total value of $253,445.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 112,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,879,618.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Willie Cw Chiang bought 10,000 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $49.50 per share, with a total value of $495,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $495,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 178,919 shares of company stock valued at $8,834,653. Corporate insiders own 0.96% 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.