Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wolfe Research Analyst Says

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) had its price target boosted by equities research analysts at Wolfe Research from $70.00 to $83.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Wolfe Research’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 16.33% from the company’s previous close.

DAL has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $72.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $77.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $79.97.

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 4.2%

NYSE DAL traded up $2.86 on Wednesday, hitting $71.35. 8,110,003 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,810,209. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $66.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.34. Delta Air Lines has a 52-week low of $34.74 and a 52-week high of $73.16. The company has a market capitalization of $46.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.38.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 13th. The transportation company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $14.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.80 billion. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 20.99% and a net margin of 7.90%.Delta Air Lines’s revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.85 earnings per share. 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. Research analysts predict that Delta Air Lines will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $386,364,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 54.8% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,817,783 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $330,159,000 after buying an additional 2,058,744 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 2.3% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,572,577 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,667,479,000 after acquiring an additional 1,648,071 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 23.3% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,661,911 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $434,813,000 after acquiring an additional 1,447,058 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 16,044.7% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,263,320 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $71,693,000 after acquiring an additional 1,255,495 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support lifted sentiment — multiple firms reiterated or initiated Buy ratings and kept bullish targets, helping push the stock up. Delta Air Lines (DAL) Gets a Buy from Wells Fargo UBS Sticks to Its Buy Rating for Delta Air Lines (DAL) Delta Air Lines, Inc. Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy”
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings showed an EPS beat and management set FY‑2026 guidance that emphasizes premium customers, margin gains and strong free cash flow — supporting expectations for debt reduction and higher shareholder returns. Q4 2025 earnings call transcript Delta Q4 results and guidance (Yahoo)
• Positive Sentiment: Delta’s order for Boeing 787 Dreamliners signals fleet modernization and long-term unit-cost improvement, which analysts view as a structural positive for margins and international growth. Delta orders Boeing 787s (Business Insider)
• Neutral Sentiment: Management highlighted premiumization (more premium fliers and expected fare mix improvement) and plans to expand lounges to address capacity — both support revenue quality but require execution. Delta Expects Premium Fliers to Boost Profit (MSN) CEO: We’re working on adding more lounges (YouTube)
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry tailwind noted: analysts suggest potential fuel savings if average passenger weight declines (e.g., from weight‑loss drugs), a macro factor that could modestly lower unit costs over time. Airlines to save on fuel as weight-loss pills gain popularity (CNBC)
• Negative Sentiment: Investors also digested a revenue miss vs. consensus and relatively cautious near‑term guidance, which pressured shares immediately after the release — a reminder that growth expectations must match execution. Delta falls as investors digest earnings and Dreamliner news (MSN) Delta Q4 coverage (Yahoo)

Delta Air Lines Company Profile

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.