Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) closed at $78.96 in the latest trading session, marking a -1.51% move from the prior day. The stock fell short of the S&P 500, which registered a loss of 0.58% for the day. At the same time, the Dow lost 1.18%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 0.32%.
Heading into today, shares of the airline had lost 10.13% over the past month, lagging the Transportation sector's loss of 3.23% and the S&P 500's loss of 0.36%.
Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of Delta Air Lines in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $2.03, reflecting a 18.71% increase from the same quarter last year. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $17.67 billion, reflecting a 6% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.
Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $6.23 per share and revenue of $66.58 billion, indicating changes of +7.04% and +5.08%, respectively, compared to the previous year.
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Delta Air Lines. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. Consequently, upward revisions in estimates express analysts' positivity towards the business operations and its ability to generate profits.
Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 4.7% downward. Currently, Delta Air Lines is carrying a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
In terms of valuation, Delta Air Lines is presently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 12.87. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 11.24.
It is also worth noting that DAL currently has a PEG ratio of 1.11. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. DAL's industry had an average PEG ratio of 0.75 as of yesterday's close.
The Transportation - Airline industry is part of the Transportation sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 209, putting it in the bottom 16% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the strength of our separate industry groups by calculating the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks contained within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.
Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA -0.48%) (BRKB -0.41%) has now revealed two full quarters of stock purchases and sales since Greg Abel became chief executive officer of the enormous conglomerate. He's stepping into the large shoes left by Warren Buffett, who remains executive chairman of the company and actively involved in stock picking, according to various reports.
Abel has not been afraid to shake things up, quickly making Alphabet one of the largest stocks in the portfolio and buying and selling many other stocks. In the second quarter, Berkshire trimmed many of its bank stocks, including Bank of America, while increasing or adding new positions in companies that can benefit from lower yields.
Is Abel betting on lower interest rates?
Image source: The Motley Fool.
Trimming banks In Q2, Berkshire Hathaway trimmed its Bank of America position by 6% and slashed its positions in Ally Financial and Capital One by 7% and 58%, respectively.
Bank of America is a money-center bank involved in all aspects of banking, from commercial lending to investment banking. Ally and Capital One are large banks as well, but heavily involved in consumer lending, such as auto and credit card lending.
Generally, bank stocks have performed relatively well this year. Not only have banks seemed to serve as diversification away from artificial intelligence, but the yield curve has steepened, meaning shorter-dated bonds yield less than long-term ones.
This is an ideal setup for most banks, which borrow money at the short part of the yield curve and lend toward the longer end. Ally and Capital One haven't performed as well, partly due to investor concerns that consumers are starting to feel the pinch and that loan losses will rise.
Borrowing costs are also high now, which could be stunting loan demand.
BAC data by YCharts.
Still, if the yield curve keeps steepening, that could, in theory, be good for banks, although I do think longer-term yields at current levels could be starting to spook bank investors as well. Still, in theory, as long as the curve stays steep, that should be good for bank profits, assuming credit stays in check.
In Q2, Berkshire increased its positions in Delta Air Lines (DAL +1.80%) and Lennar Corp and initiated a new position in D.R. Horton.
Delta is one of the largest U.S. Airlines tend to perform better in a lower-rate environment because most airlines carry significant debt, some of which is tied to variable interest rates that are affected by broader interest rate changes.
At the end of Q2, Delta carried $13.6 billion in debt, 22% of which is subject to variable interest rates, so lower rates would mean lower interest payments.
Additionally, a lower-rate environment tends to stimulate economic activity and spending, benefiting airlines.
Lennar and D.R. Horton are two of the largest homebuilders in the U.S. The mortgage and real estate industries have been absolutely hammered by high rates, particularly at the longer end of the curve, such as the 10-year yield, which directly influences mortgage rates.
Higher rates combined with high home values have made buying a home difficult for much of the country's consumers. Both of these stocks have struggled this year.
LEN data by YCharts.
You don't buy housing stocks in a rising-rate environment. Although concerns about persistent inflation are certainly real, nobody can say for certain what will happen.
There have been some signs that inflation is softening, perhaps clearing the way for lower rates. An end to the Iran war would surely help this cause, not that anyone knows when that is coming either.
It's worth noting that, aside from Bank of America, the other stocks mentioned in this article are relatively small positions in Berkshire's vast equity portfolio, so they may not be very indicative of anything.
Furthermore, Berkshire typically tries to buy stocks that will perform well throughout the economic cycle.
Airline stocks tend to be volatile, and Delta Air Lines (DAL +1.46%) is no exception. Airline companies tend to have fixed costs and exposure to highly dynamic variable costs, such as jet fuel, and transportation demand can ebb and flow.
This all leaves them exposed to a cycle of declining earnings as revenue dries up while they continue to run routes with lower-than-expected load factors. These risks are why stocks like Delta Air Lines tend to trade at low valuations.
But is it justified?
Delta Air Lines in 2026 To be clear, despite maintaining its full-year 2026 guidance for earnings per share of $6.50-$7.50 and free cash flow (FCF) of $3 billion to $4 billion, Delta has been negatively impacted by events.
Image source: Getty Images.
These prospects have been hit by soaring jet fuel costs, which means Delta's management now expects a $4 billion increase in fuel costs in 2026. In light of these costs, the Wall Street consensus EPS estimate has shifted from $7.17 at the start of the year to $6.48 now, slightly below the low end of management's guidance.
In addition, while the conflict in the Persian Gulf continues and the Strait of Hormuz is largely closed to commercial traffic, there is likely to be upward pressure on oil prices and, in turn, on jet fuel prices.
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Why Delta Air Lines' stock is a great value The company faces headwinds, but here's the thing. Even with lowered earnings expectations, Delta Air Lines trades at less than 12 times estimated earnings, and this comes in a year when it faced the highest fuel expenses in its history ($4.4 billion) in the second quarter.
Meanwhile, according to Chief Commercial Officer Joe Esposito on the July earnings call, customer demand remained "strong and broad-based." It's a viewpoint recently echoed by airline peer, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby.
In addition, Delta has made great strides in reducing its cyclical exposure over the last decade by growing its premium cabin revenue, loyalty-based revenue, and American Express remuneration from its co-branded credit card, alongside its main cabin revenue. In fact, main cabin revenue accounted for less than 35% of operating revenue in the second quarter, compared with more than 38% in the same quarter of 2025.
In addition, Delta's management isn't adding seats in its main cabin and has indicated a willingness to slow capacity growth in response to rising jet fuel prices.
Is Delta Air Lines stock a buy? The current valuation already reflects elevated 2026 fuel costs. Unless those costs rise substantially or demand softens meaningfully, Delta looks like a good value at less than 12 times forward earnings and roughly 14 times free cash flow. The multi-year shift toward premium, loyalty, and co-brand revenue also supports the case for a gradual rerating.
In the latest trading session, Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) closed at $78.14, marking a +2.3% move from the previous day. The stock's change was more than the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.46%. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.56%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.45%.
Shares of the airline have depreciated by 17.67% over the course of the past month, underperforming the Transportation sector's loss of 0.86%, and the S&P 500's gain of 2%.
The upcoming earnings release of Delta Air Lines will be of great interest to investors. The company is expected to report EPS of $2.03, up 18.71% from the prior-year quarter. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $17.67 billion, indicating a 6% upward movement from the same quarter last year.
For the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $6.23 per share and a revenue of $66.58 billion, representing changes of +7.04% and +5.08%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Delta Air Lines. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the business outlook.
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, running from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), holds an admirable track record of superior performance, independently audited, with #1 stocks contributing an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed a 4.7% decrease. Delta Air Lines presently features a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
With respect to valuation, Delta Air Lines is currently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 12.26. This signifies a premium in comparison to the average Forward P/E of 10.78 for its industry.
It's also important to note that DAL currently trades at a PEG ratio of 1.05. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Transportation - Airline was holding an average PEG ratio of 0.71 at yesterday's closing price.
The Transportation - Airline industry is part of the Transportation sector. Currently, this industry holds a Zacks Industry Rank of 204, positioning it in the bottom 18% of all 250+ industries.
The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Remember to apply Zacks.com to follow these and more stock-moving metrics during the upcoming trading sessions.
Beaconlight Capital LLC bought a new position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL – Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 81,820 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,663,000. Delta Air Lines accounts for about 2.7% of Beaconlight Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position.
A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 195.9% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 358 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the period. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 451.6% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 524 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Main Street Group LTD purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insiders Place Their Bets In related news, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 40,460 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.55, for a total value of $3,785,033.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 104,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,766,994.20. This represents a 27.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Peter W. Carter sold 39,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.98, for a total transaction of $3,709,902.00. Following the transaction, the president owned 424,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,488,977.92. This represents a 8.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 356,726 shares of company stock worth $33,081,037. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Key Stories Impacting Delta Air Lines Here are the key news stories impacting Delta Air Lines this week: Positive Sentiment: A U.S. appeals court vacated the Department of Transportation’s order terminating Delta’s joint venture and antitrust immunity with Grupo Aeroméxico. The ruling preserves the decade-old cross-border partnership, supporting network breadth, schedule coordination and potential revenue synergies. Delta Air Lines vs. Grupo Aeroméxico partnership article Positive Sentiment: Delta plans to resume daily nonstop service between New York and Tel Aviv on September 6. Restoring the route could improve international capacity utilization and revenue if travel demand remains firm. Delta to resume New York-Tel Aviv flights Positive Sentiment: Industry airfares have risen sharply, indicating a favorable pricing environment for carriers such as Delta. Higher fares could support revenue and margins, although capacity and demand will determine how durable the benefit is. Airfare pricing article Positive Sentiment: Delta’s valuation and analyst sentiment remain supportive: the company is described as a strong value stock and has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating. Elevated call-option activity also signals increased near-term bullish speculation, though options flow is not a fundamental guarantee. Neutral Sentiment: Delta and United have resumed flights amid a broader shift in travel patterns; the key variables are whether demand holds and whether airlines can sustain pricing. Delta and United resume flights Negative Sentiment: American Airlines is restoring seatback screens to narrow its product and profitability gap with Delta, potentially increasing competitive pressure on Delta’s premium-service advantage. American Airlines restores screens Negative Sentiment: Recent trading showed DAL underperforming the broader market, suggesting investors may be taking profits or focusing on execution, competition and the sustainability of airline pricing despite the favorable partnership ruling. Delta Air Lines Trading Up 0.0% Shares of DAL opened at $80.09 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $87.73 and its 200 day moving average is $76.65. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $55.03 and a fifty-two week high of $95.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.67 billion, a PE ratio of 13.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.42.
Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 9th. The transportation company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.07. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 17.52% and a net margin of 5.79%.The business had revenue of $17.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 9th were issued a $0.215 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is a positive change from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.26%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets DAL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Delta Air Lines from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $112.00 to $105.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Twenty-three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $99.84.
View Our Latest Analysis on Delta Air Lines
(Free Report)
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.
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Passengers check baggage at Ben Gurion Airport in June 2025. (Photo by Jack Guez)
AFP via Getty Images
Airlines are suddenly boosting service between the United States and Israel, with the three global U.S. carriers and three Israeli carriers looking to high demand in the coming months.
The latest new flight announcement came Tuesday, when United said it will resume San Francisco-Tel Aviv flying, four days a week on a Boeing 787, starting March 28, 2027. United had suspended the flight in February due to middle east conflict. Israeli carrier El Al announced in June that it will begin flights from Ben Gurion Airport (TLV) to San Francisco in October. Both cities are technology centers.
Meanwhile, on the Tel Aviv-New York Kennedy route, three Israeli carriers have or will have service, as will Delta, while United offers Newark service.
“The timing is because they see that Israel is open for tourists, that Israel is safe for tourists,” Yoram Elgrabli, tourism commissioner for North America at the Israel Ministry of Tourism, said Tuesday in an interview.
Now the airlines “are all coming at the same time,” Elgrabli said. “I think that airlines are hearing the voice from the market, the demand from the market. We know there is demand here in the US market. We have much to offer the American traveler.”
Delta will resume daily flights between JFK-TLV on Sept. 6, while United will resume double daily service from Newark to TLV on Sept. 8.
Also, American Airlines plans to return to the JFK-TLV market in March 2027, while Air Canada plans to reinstate service from Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) four times weekly beginning Jan. 17, 2027.
Meanwhile, two startup Israeli carriers plan New York service. They are Israir, a budget carrier that has just received Federal Aviation Administration to begin New York area service in mid-October, and Arkia, which began JFK service last year. Long-established El Al serves both New York airports.
According to Israeli newspaper Haaretz. “Israir, owned by Israeli retail mogul Rami Levy since early 2021, announced on Monday in a filing made to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange that it had received FAA approval.
The carrier has said it would begin flying to JFK on October 19, “though airline officials added that they would consider moving up the date of the inaugural flight if the airline receives the final approval to do so,” Haaretz said. Israir is expected to operate the flights with two Airbus A330-200s, which it acquired earlier this year. “The two aircraft were initially flown by US Airways in 2010 and were later transferred to American Airlines in 2015, in the wake of the merger of the two U.S. carriers,” Haaretz said.
Arkia began TLV-JFK service in February 2025, flying three days a week. It leases widebody aircraft and crews from other carriers. It currently leases a Boeing 787 and will begin using an Airbus A330-300 next month, according to The Jerusalem Post.
El Al serves both JFK and Newark, as well as Boston, Los Angeles and Miami.
With all the service, fares appear to be coming down. They were high when the U.S. carriers suspended service and only El Al was willing to operate.
“In early July, after Israel’s airspace reopened following the 12-day war with Iran, round-trip El Al economy fares stood at around $1,530 and increased to $2,666 at the end of the month,” The Jerusalem Post reported in July, citing Tel Aviv origination fares. “And in August, El Al economy class flight tickets were almost sold out, with the company offering travelers the option to pay for premium class tickets with fares ranging from $3,650 to $4,060. On Arkia, prices ranged from $1,750 to $2,500, and were selling for as much as $3,400 toward the end of August.”
Today, for travel originating in late October, Delta round trip fares start at $1,454, while Delta Comfort starts at $3,044. Elgrabli said, “Competition is always good for everyone. For the American customer, the price is going down.”
On CNBC’s “Halftime Report Final Trades,” Joshua Brown, co-founder and CEO of Ritholtz Wealth Management, picked Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL).
Lending support to his choice, Delta Air Lines, on July 10, posted better-than-expected earnings for the second quarter. Delta Air reported quarterly earnings of $1.56 per share, which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $1.47 per share. The company reported quarterly sales of $19.757 billion, which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $17.532 billion.
Kari Firestone, co-founder of Aureus Asset Management, named Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE:TMO) as her final trade.
On the earnings front, Thermo Fisher Scientific reported better-than-expected second-quarter financial results on July 23 and raised its FY2026 guidance.
Don’t forget to check out our premarket coverage here
Stephanie Link, chief investment strategist, head of investment solutions and equity portfolio manager at Hightower Advisors, recommended Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT).
Trending
Target reported better-than-expected second-quarter financial results on Aug. 19 and raised its FY26 EPS and sales guidance above estimates.
Joseph M. Terranova, senior managing director for Virtus Investment Partners, picked Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:IBKR).
According to recent news, the company announced on Aug. 18 a new funding solution for IBKR clients in Latin America through a collaboration with Paysafe’s SafetyPay.
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Price Action Delta Air rose 1.4% to close at $83.62 on Tuesday. Thermo Fisher Scientific shares slipped 0.1% to settle at $628.15 during the session. Target shares fell 3.8% to close at $163.47 on Tuesday. Interactive Brokers shares rose 5.5% to settle at $98.19 during the session. Photo via Shutterstock
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In Warren Buffett's last few years at the helm of Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA +0.27%) (BRKB +0.26%), the company didn't do much buying and hoarded cash. The conglomerate was a net seller of stocks in the last few years leading up to the handoff to new CEO Greg Abel in January. By the first quarter of 2026, the firm had amassed a record $397 billion in cash in the portfolio.
That changed in the second quarter of 2026, as Berkshire Hathaway became a net buyer of stocks for the first time in 14 straight quarters as a net seller. The company bought roughly $23.5 billion in stocks last quarter and sold just $3.7 billion. As a result, the massive pile of cash dropped to approximately $365 billion.
Image source: Getty Images.
One of the biggest moves Abel made was buying 17.5 million shares of Delta Air Lines (DAL -1.32%) stock, increasing the position by 44%. Berkshire now holds 57.3 million shares of Delta, valued at $5.4 billion, up from $2.6 billion after Q1. Delta is now the 13th-largest position in the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio, representing about 1.8% of the portfolio. Further, Berkshire now holds 8.7% of Delta stock, up from 6.1% in the first quarter.
Back on board with Delta Berkshire Hathaway has owned Delta in the past; in fact, the conglomerate held the stock from 2016 through 2020 and built up a sizable stake. But when the pandemic hit, Buffett exited his position in Delta entirely, selling off the remaining 61 million shares in Q2 2020.
It wasn't just Delta, however. Buffett sold off all of his airline shares when the pandemic hit, dumping his holdings in American Airlines, United Airlines Holdings, and Southwest Airlines. Most surprising was not that he sold, but when he sold -- at the bottom, meaning he got fearful and locked in losses rather than ride it out.
Also, it took six years for Berkshire to get back on board with commercial airline stocks, even though the two major carriers, Delta and United, have performed well. In Q1, Berkshire bought 39.8 million shares of Delta, adding another 17.5 million in Q2. Delta is the only airline stock that Berkshire Hathaway currently owns.
Delta has had a resurgence since then, with an average annual return of 15% over the past five years. It has averaged a 25% return over the past three years and is up 33% over the past 12 months and 19% year to date.
The good thing is that Berkshire and Abel do not appear to be too late to buy in, as Delta stock is still relatively cheap, trading at 13 times earnings and 12 times forward earnings. Wall Street is almost all in on Delta, with 89% of analysts rating it a buy. Delta stock has a median price target of $105 per share, implying a 28% gain over the next 12 months.
Dave Kovaleski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool recommends Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
In the latest trading session, Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) closed at $81.14, marking a -2.34% move from the previous day. The stock's change was less than the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.72%. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 1.57%.
The airline's stock has dropped by 3.68% in the past month, falling short of the Transportation sector's loss of 2.67% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.68%.
The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Delta Air Lines in its upcoming release. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $2.03, reflecting a 18.71% increase from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $17.67 billion, up 6% from the year-ago period.
For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $6.23 per share and a revenue of $66.58 billion, signifying shifts of +7.04% and +5.08%, respectively, from the last year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Delta Air Lines. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.
Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 4.7% lower. Right now, Delta Air Lines possesses a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
In terms of valuation, Delta Air Lines is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 13.33. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 11.59, so one might conclude that Delta Air Lines is trading at a premium comparatively.
We can also see that DAL currently has a PEG ratio of 1.15. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. By the end of yesterday's trading, the Transportation - Airline industry had an average PEG ratio of 0.93.
The Transportation - Airline industry is part of the Transportation sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 180, placing it within the bottom 27% of over 250 industries.
The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Be sure to use Zacks.com to monitor all these stock-influencing metrics, and more, throughout the forthcoming trading sessions.
Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.
Featuring daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, the research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor.
Zacks Premium also includes the Zacks Style Scores.
What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores is a unique set of guidelines that rates stocks based on three popular investing types, and were developed as complementary indicators for the Zacks Rank. This combination helps investors choose securities with the highest chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics. Just like in school, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on -- that means the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value ScoreFor value investors, it's all about finding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value before the broader market catches on. The Value Style Score utilizes ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to help pick out the most attractive and discounted stocks.
Growth ScoreWhile good value is important, growth investors are more focused on a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score takes projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow into account to uncover stocks that will see long-term, sustainable growth.
Momentum ScoreMomentum traders and investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." This investing style is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Employing factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, the Momentum Style Score can indicate favorable times to build a position in high-momentum stocks.
VGM ScoreIf you like to use all three kinds of investing, then the VGM Score is for you. It's a combination of all Style Scores, and is an important indicator to use with the Zacks Rank. The VGM Score rates each stock on their shared weighted styles, narrowing down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.
It's highly successful, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +23.8% average annual return since 1988. That's more than double the S&P 500. But because of the large number of stocks we rate, there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.
Since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank, the direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy.
Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) Delta Air Lines, Inc. is one of the four carriers that together account for roughly 60% of the U.S. aviation market, following industry consolidation in the early part of this century.
DAL is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.
It also boasts a Value Style Score of A thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 13.02; value investors should take notice.
Five analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days for fiscal 2026. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.65 to $6.23 per share. DAL boasts an average earnings surprise of +5.5%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, DAL should be on investors' short list.
Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK-B | BRK-B Price Prediction) CEO Greg Abel added 17,510,544 shares of Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) during the second quarter of 2026, lifting Berkshire’s stake to 57,320,000 shares valued at $5,368,591,200 as of June 30, 2026, per the 13F filed August 14, 2026. Delta was Berkshire’s largest add of the quarter after Alphabet, and the only airline in the portfolio.
The size of the bet is the story. Berkshire disclosed a new Delta position of 39,809,456 shares worth roughly $2.65 billion in Q1 2026. One quarter later, Abel raised it by 44%. Same period, Berkshire exited Constellation Brands entirely and trimmed Bank of America, Capital One, Nucor, Kroger, DaVita and Ally. Abel has said nothing publicly about the trade, so any thesis has to be inferred from the filings and from Delta’s own disclosures.
Why This Reversal Matters In his 2007 shareholder letter, Warren Buffett laid out one of his most quoted verdicts on the industry: “The worst sort of business is one that grows rapidly, requires significant capital to engender the growth, and then earns little or no money. Think airlines.” He added that “investors have poured money into a bottomless pit, attracted by growth when they should have been repelled by it,” and joked that “if a farsighted capitalist had been present at Kitty Hawk, he would have done his successors a huge favor by shooting Orville down.”
Buffett called his 1989 USAir preferred a mistake, bought stakes in the big four US carriers in 2016, and sold all of them at a multibillion-dollar loss in May 2020. Buffett stepped down as CEO. His literal successor just re-entered the sector with a bigger check.
What Changed About Delta The Delta on Abel’s book looks very different from the commodity carrier Buffett described. In the June quarter, diversified, high-margin revenue streams accounted for 61% of total revenue. Premium product revenue rose 17%, loyalty program revenue rose 19%, and American Express remuneration reached $2.4 billion, up 16%. Delta expects $9 billion in Amex remuneration this year and roughly $1.2 billion of Delta TechOps revenue, up nearly 50%. Add cargo and the Monroe Energy refinery, and the earnings base looks less like a legacy airline and more like a branded consumer platform with a flying operation attached.
CEO Ed Bastian’s framing is deliberate: “We’re no longer competing on price as much as we’re competing on value and experience and service.” Management affirmed FY 2026 adjusted EPS of $6.50 to $7.50 and free cash flow of $3 to $4 billion, absorbing record quarterly fuel costs of $4.41 billion. While Berkshire was buying, Delta declared a dividend increase to $0.215 per share from $0.1875 on June 18, 2026.
Should Retirement Investors Follow The stock has run: up 44.02% over the past year and 19.66% year to date, though shares have slipped 7.77% over the past week to $82.41. Forward P/E sits at 13, with an analyst target of $105.31. Fuel and cyclicality remain real risks, and a 13F is a point-in-time snapshot as of June 30, 2026, not a statement of what Berkshire owns today (if you like borrowing Berkshire’s homework, we ranked the seven cheapest dividend payers still on its book in a free report here). The signal worth taking is analytical: Abel bought a diversified, brand-driven Delta with premium, loyalty, and Amex-linked revenue streams that did not exist in the commodity airline Buffett once rejected. If that thesis holds through the next fuel cycle, following the trade is defensible. Copying it blindly is not.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.
While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.
Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors use fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large.
In addition to the Zacks Rank, investors looking for stocks with specific traits can utilize our Style Scores system. Of course, value investors will be most interested in the system's "Value" category. Stocks with "A" grades for Value and high Zacks Ranks are among the best value stocks available at any given moment.
One stock to keep an eye on is Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) . DAL is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and an A for Value. The stock holds a P/E ratio of 9.13, while its industry has an average P/E of 9.63. DAL's Forward P/E has been as high as 9.94 and as low as 5.04, with a median of 8.52, all within the past year.
Another valuation metric that we should highlight is DAL's P/B ratio of 2.24. The P/B ratio pits a stock's market value against its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 2.41. Within the past 52 weeks, DAL's P/B has been as high as 3.11 and as low as 1.52, with a median of 2.29.
Finally, investors should note that DAL has a P/CF ratio of 5.57. This data point considers a firm's operating cash flow and is frequently used to find companies that are undervalued when considering their solid cash outlook. DAL's P/CF compares to its industry's average P/CF of 6.79. Over the past year, DAL's P/CF has been as high as 7.54 and as low as 3.79, with a median of 5.32.
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Delta Air Lines is likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, DAL feels like a great value stock at the moment.
The Transportation group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.
Delta Air Lines is a member of our Transportation group, which includes 110 different companies and currently sits at #2 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.
The Zacks Rank is a proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Delta Air Lines is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for DAL's full-year earnings has moved 29.7% higher. This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock's earnings outlook is more positive.
According to our latest data, DAL has moved about 18.8% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, the Transportation sector has returned an average of 15% on a year-to-date basis. This means that Delta Air Lines is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
Another Transportation stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Okeanis Eco Tankers Corp. (ECO - Free Report) . The stock has returned 91.2% year-to-date.
Over the past three months, Okeanis Eco Tankers Corp.'s consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 60.9%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
To break things down more, Delta Air Lines belongs to the Transportation - Airline industry, a group that includes 28 individual companies and currently sits at #156 in the Zacks Industry Rank. This group has lost an average of 8.1% so far this year, so DAL is performing better in this area.
On the other hand, Okeanis Eco Tankers Corp. belongs to the Transportation - Shipping industry. This 28-stock industry is currently ranked #37. The industry has moved +57.3% year to date.
Delta Air Lines and Okeanis Eco Tankers Corp. could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Transportation stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
The second-quarter 13F from Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA -0.15%)(BRKB -0.21%) reached the SEC on Aug. 14, and it shows what CEO Greg Abel did with the conglomerate's $299 billion U.S. stock portfolio during his second full quarter running the company. Much of the portfolio sat still: Apple, American Express, and Coca-Cola -- three of the four biggest positions -- didn't move by a share. And the filing's largest addition, about $17 billion of Alphabet, extended a purchase Alphabet had already disclosed back in June.
The new information sat in two smaller lines. Berkshire cut its Bank of America (BAC -0.28%) stake by about 30.2 million shares, a reduction of 5.9% worth about $1.7 billion at quarter-end prices. That was the largest dollar amount Berkshire subtracted from any position.
And it added about 17.5 million shares of Delta Air Lines (DAL +1.67%), growing that stake 44% to 57.3 million shares, worth about $5.4 billion at the end of June.
A bank out, an airline in. What makes the pairing worth a closer look is the history on each side of it.
Image source: The Motley Fool.
Extending Buffett's sellingThe Bank of America sale extends one of Warren Buffett's last big projects as CEO. Berkshire held just over 1.03 billion shares of the bank in the middle of 2024. It has sold in every quarter since, and the position now stands at 483.4 million shares -- down more than half in about two years. This was the eighth consecutive filing to show a smaller Bank of America stake than the one before it.
The quarter had other cuts, too. Berkshire sold more than half of its Capital One position and reduced its Kroger stake by 22%, or 11 million shares. Neither was a continuation of anything. Both stakes had sat unchanged for at least a year before Abel cut them.
I wouldn't call the selling alarming. Bank of America remains one of Berkshire's largest holdings, at about $27.5 billion as of June 30. But a stake that has been cut in half over two years, by two different CEOs, says the company would rather own something else.
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Delta is backThe something else, this quarter, included an airline. And that is the surprising part of the filing.
In the spring of 2020, Buffett sold every airline stock Berkshire owned -- positions in Delta, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, and United Airlines worth north of $4 billion at the time -- and called his valuation of the airlines an "understandable mistake."
"The world has changed for the airlines," he explained at that year's annual meeting.
Berkshire owned no airline stock for almost six years afterward.
Delta reentered the portfolio in the first quarter of this year, at 39.8 million shares. The second quarter's purchase brings Berkshire to 57.3 million shares, which comes to about 8.8% of the airline (approaching the size of the stake Buffett abandoned). At Delta's current price, the position is worth about $4.7 billion. And the $1.6 billion Berkshire spent growing it, measured at quarter-end prices, nearly matches the $1.7 billion it pulled out of Bank of America.
A cheap airline, if the growth holdsDelta's own results give some clues about why. The airline's June-quarter earnings came to $2.44 per share by generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), on $19.8 billion of operating revenue. Its adjusted earnings of $1.56 per share were down 26% from a year earlier -- the cost of absorbing the highest quarterly fuel expense in the company's history.
Management still affirmed full-year guidance calling for adjusted earnings between $6.50 and $7.50 per share (about 20% growth at the midpoint) along with free cash flow between $3 billion and $4 billion.
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The company also announced a 15% dividend increase, beginning in the September quarter, and kept paying down debt. Adjusted net debt ended June at $13.6 billion.
At about $82 as of this writing, the stock trades at roughly 14 times earnings, and about 12 times the middle of its own guidance range for this year. That looks cheap for a business guiding to 20% earnings growth -- if the growth holds. Airlines are cyclical, fuel is volatile, and Buffett's 2020 exit shows how fast the economics can turn.
As always, the filing shows holdings as of June 30, not when the trades happened, and Berkshire doesn't explain its reasoning. Even so, this quarter's pattern is hard to misread, I'd argue. Abel took money out of a bank position Berkshire has been shrinking for two years and put a nearly identical amount into an airline priced at about 12 times this year's guided earnings, with debt falling and a bigger dividend already being paid. Buffett gave up on this stock. His successor keeps buying it.
For Immediate ReleaseChicago, IL – August 21, 2026 – Today, Zacks Equity Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) , American Airlines (AAL - Free Report) and Copa Holdings (CPA - Free Report) .
The ongoing tensions between the United States and Iran have resulted in a sharp rise in oil prices, a key input cost for airlines. The ongoing uncertainty over talks between them has added to the uncertain scenario. Stocks in the Zacks Transportation - Airline industry have been badly hit by this turbulent scenario. Crude prices have moved sharply on headlines tied to the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route.
High labor costs are also hurting bottom-line growth. Despite these headwinds, the industry has shown resilience, particularly among companies focusing on growth strategies and operational efficiency. The upbeat air-travel demand witnessed during the summer season is also a positive for airline stocks. Notable players expected to withstand these challenges include Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and Copa Holdings.
About the IndustryThe Zacks Airline industry players are engaged in transporting passengers and cargo to various destinations globally. Most operators maintain a fleet of multiple mainline jets in addition to several regional planes. The companies' operations are aided by their regional airline subsidiaries and third-party regional carriers.
Additionally, industry players utilize their respective cargo divisions to offer a wide range of freight and mail services. The players invest substantially to upgrade technology. The industry, apart from comprising legacy carriers, includes low-cost players. The well-being of companies in this group is linked to the health of the overall economy. For example, the aviation space was one of the worst pandemic-hit sectors, with passenger revenues taking a beating. However, air travel demand has improved from the pandemic lows.
Factors Relevant to the Industry's FortunesSurge in Fuel Costs: A Bane: The ongoing uncertainty in the Middle East has resulted in a sharp jump in oil prices. This upward movement in oil prices is naturally hurting the bottom line of airlines. This is because fuel expenses represent a key input cost for airlines. Currently, oil prices are hovering around $85 a barrel. With most U.S. carriers having abandoned fuel hedging strategies, such oil supply disruption has left them fully exposed to price spikes. This development may hurt the second-quarter earnings of airlines, particularly in the event of the conflict persisting.
Uptick in Labor Costs: The increase in expenses on the labor front represents another challenge for airlines. For example, at American Airlines, salaries and related costs have increased 8.2% year over year in the first half of 2026. With U.S. airlines grappling with labor shortages, the bargaining power of various labor groups has naturally increased. As a result, we have seen pay-hike deals being inked in the space. This is resulting in a spike in labor costs, limiting bottom-line growth in turn.
Upbeat Summer Travel: A Positive: Despite headwinds like high inflation, elevated fuel and labor costs, air-travel demand, particularly on the leisure front, remains healthy as exemplified by the upbeat Memorial Day weekend air travel scenario. In fact, passenger volumes, despite high air fares, are expected to remain strong during the entire summer season. For example, American Airlines expects record travel during the summer season (May 21-Sept. 8). During the period, the airline expects to fly 75 million passengers across 750,000 flights, smashing its previous record established in 2019.
Strong Financial Returns for Shareholders: With economic activities gaining pace from the pandemic lows, more and more companies are allocating their increasing cash pile by way of dividends and buybacks to pacify long-suffering shareholders. This underlines their financial strength and business confidence.
Among airlines, Delta’s board of directors approved a dividend hike of 15%, thereby raising its quarterly cash dividend to 21.5 cents per share (86 cents annualized) from 18.75 cents (75 cents annualized). The move underscores DAL's strong financial position and robust cash-flow generation, highlighting its commitment to delivering value to shareholders.
Zacks Industry Rank Signals Dull ProspectsThe Zacks Airline industry is a 29-stock group within the broader Zacks Transportation sector. The industry currently carries a Zacks Industry Rank #163, which places it in the bottom 34% of 247 industries.
The group’s Zacks Industry Rank, basically the average of the Zacks Rank of all the member stocks, indicates murky near-term prospects. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.
The industry’s positioning in the bottom 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries is a result of a negative earnings outlook for the constituent companies in aggregate.
Looking at the aggregate earnings estimate revisions, it appears that analysts are gradually losing confidence in this group’s earnings growth potential. The industry's earnings estimate for 2026 has decreased 34.1% on a year -over-year basis.
Before we present a few stocks from the industry that you may want to hold on to, let’s take a look at the industry’s recent stock market performance and the valuation picture.
Industry Lags the Sector and the S&P500Over the past year, the Zacks Transportation - Airline industry has gained 4.8% compared with the S&P 500 composite’s rise of 23.5%. The broader sector has gained 22.3% in the same time frame.
Valuation PictureThe price/sales (P/S) ratio is often used to value airline stocks. The industry currently has a forward 12-month P/S of 0.52X compared with the S&P 500’s 4.97X. It is also below the sector’s forward-12-month P/S of 1.52X.
Over the past five years, the industry has traded as high as 0.75X, as low as 0.29X and at the median of 0.46X.
3 Airline Stocks to Monitor NowDelta Air Lines continues to stand out for resilient travel demand, disciplined capacity and a revenue mix anchored in premium, loyalty and corporate. The first-half of 2026 showed impressive adjusted revenues with broad-based strength across corporate and leisure, supported by premium growth, higher card spend and expanding third-party MRO activity.
High labor and fuel costs are worrisome. The carrier’s earnings have surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the past four quarters. The average beat is 5.5%. Delta currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
American Airlines is based in Fort Worth, TX. Strong air travel demand, particularly on the leisure front, despite high fuel costs, is aiding AAL. Efforts to broaden its network are also praiseworthy.
The company’s high debt levels are worrisome. The carrier’s earnings have surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the past four quarters (missing the mark in the other quarter). The average beat is 97.6%. American Airlines currently carries a Zacks Rank #3.
Copa Holdings, based in Panama City, Panama, currently carries a Zacks Rank #3. The airline is benefiting from strong domestic air travel demand owing to factors like regional economic expansion, its ability to adapt to market trends and focus on innovative strategies.
Despite the tough conditions, Copa Holdings demonstrated resilience and beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in two of the past four quarters (missing the mark on the other occasions). The average beat is 0.9%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current and next-year earnings has been revised 0.6% and 1.2% upward over the past 60 days, respectively.
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $81.07, moving -2.67% from the previous trading session. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.87%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 1.32%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 1%.
The airline's shares have seen a decrease of 0.28% over the last month, surpassing the Transportation sector's loss of 2.69% and falling behind the S&P 500's gain of 3.48%.
Market participants will be closely following the financial results of Delta Air Lines in its upcoming release. In that report, analysts expect Delta Air Lines to post earnings of $2.19 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 28.07%. Meanwhile, the latest consensus estimate predicts the revenue to be $17.68 billion, indicating a 6.02% increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year.
For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates project earnings of $6.54 per share and a revenue of $66.56 billion, demonstrating changes of +12.37% and +5.04%, respectively, from the preceding year.
Investors should also pay attention to any latest changes in analyst estimates for Delta Air Lines. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. Consequently, upward revisions in estimates express analysts' positivity towards the business operations and its ability to generate profits.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-term stock moves. To capitalize on this, we've crafted the Zacks Rank, a unique model that incorporates these estimate changes and offers a practical rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 0.1% upward. Delta Air Lines is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
With respect to valuation, Delta Air Lines is currently being traded at a Forward P/E ratio of 12.73. This represents a premium compared to its industry average Forward P/E of 11.23.
Meanwhile, DAL's PEG ratio is currently 1.09. The PEG ratio is akin to the commonly utilized P/E ratio, but this measure also incorporates the company's anticipated earnings growth rate. The Transportation - Airline industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 0.89 as of yesterday's close.
The Transportation - Airline industry is part of the Transportation sector. Currently, this industry holds a Zacks Industry Rank of 163, positioning it in the bottom 34% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank is ordered from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.
The ongoing tensions between the United States and Iran have resulted in a sharp rise in oil prices, a key input cost for airlines. The ongoing uncertainty over talks between them has added to the uncertain scenario. Stocks in the Zacks Transportation - Airline industry have been badly hit by this turbulent scenario. Crude prices have moved sharply on headlines tied to the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route.
High labor costs are also hurting bottom-line growth. Despite these headwinds, the industry has shown resilience, particularly among companies focusing on growth strategies and operational efficiency. The upbeat air-travel demand witnessed during the summer season is also a positive for airline stocks. Notable players expected to withstand these challenges include Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) , American Airlines (AAL - Free Report) and Copa Holdings (CPA - Free Report) .
About the Industry The Zacks Airline industry players are engaged in transporting passengers and cargo to various destinations globally. Most operators maintain a fleet of multiple mainline jets in addition to several regional planes. The companies' operations are aided by their regional airline subsidiaries and third-party regional carriers. Additionally, industry players utilize their respective cargo divisions to offer a wide range of freight and mail services. The players invest substantially to upgrade technology. The industry, apart from comprising legacy carriers, includes low-cost players. The well-being of companies in this group is linked to the health of the overall economy. For example, the aviation space was one of the worst pandemic-hit sectors, with passenger revenues taking a beating. However, air travel demand has improved from the pandemic lows.
Factors Relevant to the Industry's Fortunes Surge in Fuel Costs: A Bane: The ongoing uncertainty in the Middle East has resulted in a sharp jump in oil prices. This upward movement in oil prices is naturally hurting the bottom line of airlines. This is because fuel expenses represent a key input cost for airlines. Currently, oil prices are hovering around $85 a barrel. With most U.S. carriers having abandoned fuel hedging strategies, such oil supply disruption has left them fully exposed to price spikes. This development may hurt the second-quarter earnings of airlines, particularly in the event of the conflict persisting.
Uptick in Labor Costs: The increase in expenses on the labor front represents another challenge for airlines. For example, at American Airlines, salaries and related costs have increased 8.2% year over year in the first half of 2026. With U.S. airlines grappling with labor shortages, the bargaining power of various labor groups has naturally increased. As a result, we have seen pay-hike deals being inked in the space. This is resulting in a spike in labor costs, limiting bottom-line growth in turn.
Upbeat Summer Travel: A Positive: Despite headwinds like high inflation, elevated fuel and labor costs, air-travel demand, particularly on the leisure front, remains healthy as exemplified by the upbeat Memorial Day weekend air travel scenario. In fact, passenger volumes, despite high air fares, are expected to remain strong during the entire summer season. For example, American Airlines expects record travel during the summer season (May 21-Sept. 8). During the period, the airline expects to fly 75 million passengers across 750,000 flights, smashing its previous record established in 2019.
Strong Financial Returns for Shareholders: With economic activities gaining pace from the pandemic lows, more and more companies are allocating their increasing cash pile by way of dividends and buybacks to pacify long-suffering shareholders. This underlines their financial strength and business confidence.
Among airlines, Delta’s board of directors approved a dividend hike of 15%, thereby raising its quarterly cash dividend to 21.5 cents per share (86 cents annualized) from 18.75 cents (75 cents annualized). The move underscores DAL's strong financial position and robust cash-flow generation, highlighting its commitment to delivering value to shareholders.
Zacks Industry Rank Signals Dull Prospects The Zacks Airline industry is a 29-stock group within the broader Zacks Transportation sector. The industry currently carries a Zacks Industry Rank #163, which places it in the bottom 34% of 247 industries.
The group’s Zacks Industry Rank, basically the average of the Zacks Rank of all the member stocks, indicates murky near-term prospects. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.
The industry’s positioning in the bottom 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries is a result of a negative earnings outlook for the constituent companies in aggregate.
Looking at the aggregate earnings estimate revisions, it appears that analysts are gradually losing confidence in this group’s earnings growth potential. The industry's earnings estimate for 2026 has decreased 34.1% on a year -over-year basis.
Before we present a few stocks from the industry that you may want to hold on to, let’s take a look at the industry’s recent stock market performance and the valuation picture.
Industry Lags the Sector and the S&P500 Over the past year, the Zacks Transportation - Airline industry has gained 4.8% compared with the S&P 500 composite’s rise of 23.5%. The broader sector has gained 22.3% in the same time frame.
One-Year Price PerformanceValuation Picture The price/sales (P/S) ratio is often used to value airline stocks. The industry currently has a forward 12-month P/S of 0.52X compared with the S&P 500’s 4.97X. It is also below the sector’s forward-12-month P/S of 1.52X.
Over the past five years, the industry has traded as high as 0.75X, as low as 0.29X and at the median of 0.46X.
Forward 12-Month Price-to-Sales Ratio (Past Five Years) 3 Airline Stocks to Monitor Now Delta Air Lines continues to stand out for resilient travel demand, disciplined capacity and a revenue mix anchored in premium, loyalty and corporate. The first-half of 2026 showed impressive adjusted revenues with broad-based strength across corporate and leisure, supported by premium growth, higher card spend and expanding third-party MRO activity.
High labor and fuel costs are worrisome. The carrier’s earnings have surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the past four quarters. The average beat is 5.5%. Delta currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Price and Consensus: DAL
American Airlines is based in Fort Worth, TX. Strong air travel demand, particularly on the leisure front, despite high fuel costs, is aiding AAL. Efforts to broaden its network are also praiseworthy.
The company’s high debt levels are worrisome. The carrier’s earnings have surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the past four quarters (missing the mark in the other quarter). The average beat is 97.6%. American Airlines currently carries a Zacks Rank #3.
Price and Consensus: AAL
Copa Holdings, based in Panama City, Panama, currently carries a Zacks Rank #3. The airline is benefiting from strong domestic air travel demand owing to factors like regional economic expansion, its ability to adapt to market trends and focus on innovative strategies.
Despite the tough conditions, Copa Holdings demonstrated resilience and beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings in two of the past four quarters (missing the mark on the other occasions). The average beat is 0.9%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current and next-year earnings has been revised 0.6% and 1.2% upward over the past 60 days, respectively.
The recommendations of Wall Street analysts are often relied on by investors when deciding whether to buy, sell, or hold a stock. Media reports about these brokerage-firm-employed (or sell-side) analysts changing their ratings often affect a stock's price. Do they really matter, though?
Before we discuss the reliability of brokerage recommendations and how to use them to your advantage, let's see what these Wall Street heavyweights think about Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) .
Delta currently has an average brokerage recommendation (ABR) of 1.16, on a scale of 1 to 5 (Strong Buy to Strong Sell), calculated based on the actual recommendations (Buy, Hold, Sell, etc.) made by 25 brokerage firms. An ABR of 1.16 approximates between Strong Buy and Buy.
Of the 25 recommendations that derive the current ABR, 22 are Strong Buy and two are Buy. Strong Buy and Buy respectively account for 88% and 8% of all recommendations.
Brokerage Recommendation Trends for DAL
Check price target & stock forecast for Delta here>>>
While the ABR calls for buying Delta, it may not be wise to make an investment decision solely based on this information. Several studies have shown limited to no success of brokerage recommendations in guiding investors to pick stocks with the best price increase potential.
Are you wondering why? The vested interest of brokerage firms in a stock they cover often results in a strong positive bias of their analysts in rating it. Our research shows that for every "Strong Sell" recommendation, brokerage firms assign five "Strong Buy" recommendations.
In other words, their interests aren't always aligned with retail investors, rarely indicating where the price of a stock could actually be heading. Therefore, the best use of this information could be validating your own research or an indicator that has proven to be highly successful in predicting a stock's price movement.
Zacks Rank, our proprietary stock rating tool with an impressive externally audited track record, categorizes stocks into five groups, ranging from Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) to Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), and is an effective indicator of a stock's price performance in the near future. Therefore, using the ABR to validate the Zacks Rank could be an efficient way of making a profitable investment decision.
Zacks Rank Should Not Be Confused With ABRAlthough both Zacks Rank and ABR are displayed in a range of 1--5, they are different measures altogether.
Broker recommendations are the sole basis for calculating the ABR, which is typically displayed in decimals (such as 1.28). The Zacks Rank, on the other hand, is a quantitative model designed to harness the power of earnings estimate revisions. It is displayed in whole numbers -- 1 to 5.
It has been and continues to be the case that analysts employed by brokerage firms are overly optimistic with their recommendations. Because of their employers' vested interests, these analysts issue more favorable ratings than their research would support, misguiding investors far more often than helping them.
In contrast, the Zacks Rank is driven by earnings estimate revisions. And near-term stock price movements are strongly correlated with trends in earnings estimate revisions, according to empirical research.
In addition, the different Zacks Rank grades are applied proportionately to all stocks for which brokerage analysts provide current-year earnings estimates. In other words, this tool always maintains a balance among its five ranks.
Another key difference between the ABR and Zacks Rank is freshness. The ABR is not necessarily up-to-date when you look at it. But, since brokerage analysts keep revising their earnings estimates to account for a company's changing business trends, and their actions get reflected in the Zacks Rank quickly enough, it is always timely in indicating future price movements.
Is DAL Worth Investing In?Looking at the earnings estimate revisions for Delta, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has remained unchanged over the past month at $6.54.
Analysts' steady views regarding the company's earnings prospects, as indicated by an unchanged consensus estimate, could be a legitimate reason for the stock to perform in line with the broader market in the near term.
The size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, has resulted in a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for Delta. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>
It may therefore be prudent to be a little cautious with the Buy-equivalent ABR for Delta.
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.
Ceny ropy (Brent) rostly a dostaly se zpět nad úroveň 90 USD za barel, když vyhlídky na mír na Blízkém východě se zhoršily. Investoři také sledují růst výnosů dluhopisů, americké státní dluhopisy pokračovaly v poklesech a následovaly je také asijské dluhopisy, Obavy z výdajů americké vlády a záplava dlouhodobých dluhopisů negativně ovlivňují náladu společně s cenami ropy, které vyvolávají obavy z inflace. Kombinace těchto faktorů pravděpodobně udrží trhy volatilnější, futures pro zámoří v úterý ráno ztrácí -0,4 % a podobně bude v úvodu zřejmě ztrácet Evropa. Z korporátních zpráv skupina BHP reportovala růst zisku o třetinu díky růstu komodit. Berkshire zvýšila své podíly v Delta Air Lines a Alphabet, když nový šéf Greg Abel začal využívat masivní hotovost společnosti. V Praze jsme včera viděli pomalejší rozjezd, nakonec index PX uzavíral na červené nule. Růstovou sérii přerušila CSG (-0,7 %), v záporu byl také ČEZ (-0,5 %). Současný růst komodit by však mohl být pro ČEZ podpůrným faktorem. Naopak mírně by mohly ztrácet banky.
Key Takeaways DAL will launch daily Austin-Paris service on March 27, 2027, using Airbus A330-900neo aircraft. DAL will offer up to 10 weekly Austin-Europe flights in peak summer, including Paris & Amsterdam. DAL expects about 30 Austin destinations and more than 70 peak-day departures by summer 2027. Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) is strengthening its presence in Austin by launching its first-ever nonstop service between Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (“AUS”) and Paris-Charles de Gaulle (“CDG”), starting March 27, 2027. The daily summer-season service will be operated on Airbus A330-900neo aircraft, giving Austin travelers direct access to Paris and one-stop connectivity to nearly 70 destinations across Europe, India and Africa through Delta’s joint venture with Air France-KLM.
The new Paris route is a positive development for Delta as it expands its international network from Austin and taps into growing travel demand in the region. The airline will offer up to 10 weekly nonstop flights between Austin and Europe during the peak summer period, including service to Paris and Amsterdam. This expanded connectivity will support passenger growth while strengthening Delta’s competitive position in the fast-growing Central Texas market.
Delta is also expanding its domestic and leisure network from Austin. The airline will launch daily nonstop service to San Diego in April 2027, extend Austin-Cancun service year-round and add a second daily Austin-San Jose flight. By summer 2027, Delta expects to serve about 30 destinations from Austin with more than 70 peak-day departures, indicating a significant increase in capacity and network reach.
Overall, the Austin expansion is likely to support Delta’s passenger revenues and network growth by adding new international connectivity while increasing domestic and leisure options. The airline’s continued investment in employees, airport facilities and future gate capacity further positions Austin as an important growth market, although the benefits will depend on sustained demand and the successful ramp-up of the new routes.
DAL’s Share Price PerformanceDAL’s shares have gained 46.3% over the past year compared with the Transportation - Airline industry’s 8.7% growth.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
DAL’s Zacks RankDAL currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Stocks to ConsiderInvestors interested in the Zacks Transportation sector may consider Expeditors International of Washington, Inc. (EXPD - Free Report) and LATAM Airlines Group (LTM - Free Report) .
Expeditors currently carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
EXPD has an expected earnings growth rate of 28.6% for 2026. The company has an encouraging earnings surprise history. Its earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average beat of 17.15%.
LATAM Airlines Group currently sports a Zacks Rank #1.
LTM has an expected earnings growth rate of 10.3% for the current year. The company has an encouraging earnings surprise history. Its earnings topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average beat of 97.9%.
Shares of Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL, Financials) were higher in early trading after Berkshire Hathaway increased its stake in the carrier. Regulatory filings show that Berkshire upped its investment in Delta to 8.7% as of June 30 from 6.1% previously. It's a big deal because Delta is the only airline that Berkshire owns right now.
Berkshire had stakes in numerous major U.S. airlines before, but sold its holdings in the industry during the pandemic. This time it's a more targeted approach to the sector – as shown by its greater concentration on Delta.
Berkshire's bigger position is a high-profile statement of confidence in Delta investors as airlines wrestle with fuel costs, capacity issues and changing travel demand. The size of the increase matters too. That's no little change in the portfolio, a jump from 6.1% to 8.7% is a substantial increase in ownership.
However, the filing covers Berkshire's holdings as of June 30, therefore does not indicate whether the position has changed since then. The challenge for investors is if Berkshire keeps adding and makes Delta an even bigger long-term commitment.
A Delta jet positions on the tarmac at AUS in January. (Photo by Brandon Bell)
Getty Images
It seems that Delta Air Lines has been given a second chance in Texas.
In 2005, during its bankruptcy, Delta shut down its hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. “I think it was the right decision at the right time,” said Joe Esposito, Delta’s chief commercial officer, during an interview last week in Austin, as Delta announced new service to Paris and San Diego. “We were post 9/11; the industry had all gone into bankruptcy.
“The nice thing about Austin is that it puts Delta back in Texas,” Esposito continued. Austin “is something that nobody’s claimed. And I think we’re the right carrier for Austin," he said.
Austin is the center of a high-growth area located between American’s hub in Dallas and United’s hub in Houston. It is about 165 miles from the former and 200 miles from the latter. Austin metro area population is about 2.5 million: the city, with just over a million people, is the 12th biggest in the U.S., just ahead of San Jose and Charlotte.
The Austin-Paris route plan had already been widely reported in the aviation press when Delta made its announcement. At a reception for media and local leaders at a swanky boutique hotel, the assumption was that someday, in conjunction with ongoing airport expansion, Delta will open an Austin hub.
Delta currently has 65 daily Austin departures: The Paris flight, aboard an A330-900 with 281 seats, will be number 71 when it starts on March 27, 2027.
Will Austin become a Delta hub?
“When we build a city like this we’re here for the local consumer,” Esposito said. “We follow the economic trends, and Austin is booming. Think about the companies here -- Tesla, Apple and we can go on. That’s where we want to serve. Our primary is not connecting; our primary is serving the Austin consumer.”
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However, “We wind up connecting people,” he said, noting that already 15% to 20% of Delta’s Austin passengers are connecting – largely between the West Coast and Florida. “We’re not technically calling it a hub,” he said. Yet, given the connections, “you can call it a hub already.”
International service is a natural, he said, not just because people connect in Austin but also because “Austin is a global city.” Esposito said. About 1,000 people fly transatlantic daily; about 300 fly daily to Asia (including 100 to India) and about 1,000 fly daily to Latin America, he said. For an airport with just 21.6 million total passengers in 2025, Austin already has a large contingent of international carriers: British Airways flies twice daily to London, Lufthansa serves Frankfurt and KLM serves Amsterdam. About 70 people a day fly to Paris. Today, those passengers must connect. Also, three Latin American airlines and three Canadian airlines serve Austin.
Ghizlane Badawi, chief executive officer at Austin Bergstrom International Airport, said the airport would make a good hub for Delta. “We provide the best location for Delta,” she said in an interview. They can grow to the South.”
AUS currently has 36 gates. An ongoing $5 billion expansion will create 32 more by the 2030s. Like most airport directors, Badawi is on the hunt for more service. The airport, once a military base, has two runways, one 9,000 feet and one a long 12,250 feet. “We’re working on Seoul and Tokyo,” Badawi said. Fully loaded widebody jets to Asia would require the longer runway. Seoul is a hub for Delta partner Korean Air.
You wouldn’t know it from the Delta celebration, but for now Austin is primarily a Southwest airport. (To my knowledge, AUS provides better, more complete statistics than any other U.S. airport; it even breaks down passenger count by aircraft type. Badawi told me that she is an airport stats nut.) In June, Southwest carried 44% of airport passengers, while Delta had 19%, American had 13% and United had 12%. In the 2030s airport configuration, Southwest will have 18 gates and Delta will have 15.
American will grow to nine gates from four today. Recently, American’s share at Austin has declined, down 13% from June 2025 and down 42% from June 2023. Badawi said the decline reflected the carrier’s decision to allocate aircraft to other markets following a pandemic buildup, when American’s strategy was to dominate Sunbelt flying. Nevertheless, American partner British Airways is currently the top transatlantic carrier at Austin. Dennis Tajer, spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association, which represents 17,000 American pilots, said Delta’s Austin growth after its Dallas retreat means that “Delta is not in our front yard anymore, but they are certainly in our backyard.”
Tom Noonan, CEO of Visit Austin, the city’s marketing organization, noted that in 2017 the airport had just 25 gates. “I think we’re just going to see continued growth in our airport,” he said. Delta will be able to add both domestic and international flights. “We’re excited about the future of the partnership,” he said. “I think we are becoming the third hub in the State of Texas.”
Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) ended the recent trading session at $89.20, demonstrating a -2.31% change from the preceding day's closing price. The stock's change was less than the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.17%. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a drop of 0.2%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw a decrease of 0.28%.
Shares of the airline have appreciated by 5.32% over the course of the past month, outperforming the Transportation sector's gain of 0.18%, and the S&P 500's gain of 3.84%.
The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Delta Air Lines in its forthcoming earnings report. On that day, Delta Air Lines is projected to report earnings of $2.19 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 28.07%. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $17.68 billion, reflecting a 6.02% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.
For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $6.54 per share and revenue of $66.56 billion, which would represent changes of +12.37% and +5.04%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Delta Air Lines. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the business and profitability.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed a 1.92% decrease. Right now, Delta Air Lines possesses a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
From a valuation perspective, Delta Air Lines is currently exchanging hands at a Forward P/E ratio of 13.97. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 11.58, so one might conclude that Delta Air Lines is trading at a premium comparatively.
We can also see that DAL currently has a PEG ratio of 1.15. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. The Transportation - Airline was holding an average PEG ratio of 0.82 at yesterday's closing price.
The Transportation - Airline industry is part of the Transportation sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 162, finds itself in the bottom 35% echelons of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Don't forget to use Zacks.com to keep track of all these stock-moving metrics, and others, in the upcoming trading sessions.
Key Takeaways Delta will launch daily nonstop Seattle-Tokyo Narita service on March 27, 2027, expanding Japan access. Delta's dual Tokyo-airport service should add flexibility, capacity and broader Seattle connectivity. Delta's new Narita route could support cargo demand and strengthen its trans-Pacific growth strategy. Delta Air Lines’ (DAL - Free Report) launch of daily nonstop service between Seattle and Tokyo-Narita, beginning March 27, 2027, is expected to strengthen its position in the Pacific Northwest and expand connectivity between the United States and Japan. By serving both Tokyo-Narita and Tokyo-Haneda from Seattle, Delta will provide customers with greater flexibility, additional capacity and more convenient options for accessing Tokyo and other destinations across Japan.
The new route is likely to support Delta’s broader international growth strategy by strengthening Seattle as a key Pacific gateway. Delta already operates more than 160 peak-day departures from Seattle to more than 62 destinations, including international service to Europe and Asia. Adding Narita to its existing Haneda service should enhance the appeal of its Seattle network, allowing the airline to capture more business and leisure travel demand while offering connections from markets across its broader U.S. network.
The service could also provide a boost to Delta’s cargo operations by adding dedicated belly capacity between Japan and the U.S. West Coast. Narita’s established cargo infrastructure and its role as an important commercial gateway could help Delta serve freight demand more effectively. It could also connect Japanese businesses with markets across the United States and the Americas. In addition, Delta’s joint venture partnership with Korean Air provides customers with further connectivity to destinations across Japan and Asia through Seoul.
Overall, the Seattle-Narita launch represents a positive development for Delta as the airline expands its trans-Pacific presence and strengthens its Seattle hub. Increased capacity and dual-airport access to Tokyo should support passenger demand, improve network connectivity and reinforce Delta’s competitive position in the United States-Japan market. The additional cargo capacity and broader connectivity could provide further support to the airline’s international revenue opportunities.
DAL’s Share Price PerformanceDAL’s shares have gained 52.6% over the past year compared with the Transportation - Airline industry’s 12.5% growth.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
DAL’s Zacks RankDAL currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Stocks to ConsiderInvestors interested in the Zacks Transportation sector may consider Expeditors International of Washington, Inc. (EXPD - Free Report) and LATAM Airlines (LTM - Free Report) as well.
Expeditors currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
EXPD has an expected earnings growth rate of 28.6% for 2026. The company has an encouraging earnings surprise history. Its earnings outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average beat of 17.15%.
LATAM Airlines currently sports a Zacks Rank #1.
LTM has an expected earnings growth rate of 10.3% for the current year. The company has an encouraging earnings surprise history. Its earnings topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average beat of 97.9%.
Steven M. Sear, EVP at Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL -0.70%), sold 40,460 shares of common stock on Aug. 5, 2026, according to a recent SEC Form 4 filing.
Transaction summaryMetricValueShares sold40,460Transaction value~$3.8 millionPost-transaction shares (directly held)104,404Post-transaction value~$9.72 millionTransaction value based on SEC Form 4 weighted average sale price ($93.55); post-transaction value based on Aug. 5, 2026, market close ($93.14).
Key questionsWhat were the mechanics of this insider transaction?
The activity was an exercise-and-sell transaction in which Steven M. Sear exercised 40,460 stock options at an exercise price of $51.23 and immediately sold the shares at a weighted average price of $93.55. The filing noted that the shares were sold in multiple transactions at prices ranging from $93.53 to $93.61.What is the executive's remaining equity position in Delta Air Lines?
Following the disposition, the executive retains direct ownership of 104,404 shares of common stock. At the Aug. 5, 2026, market close of $93.14, this residual direct position is valued at ~$9.72 million. No remaining derivative securities were reported in this filing.How does the company's financial profile align with this transaction?
Delta Air Lines reported trailing twelve-month revenue of $68.3 billion and net income of $4.0 billion. As of the Aug. 5, 2026, transaction date, the company, which maintains a domestic hub network in cities including Atlanta and Detroit, had a market capitalization of $60.5 billion.Company OverviewMetricValueShare Price (as of market close 2026-08-05)$93.14Market Capitalization$60.5 billionRevenue (TTM)$68.3 billionNet Income (TTM)$4.0 billionCompany SnapshotDelta Air Lines operates a comprehensive scheduled air transportation network for passengers and cargo across the United States and international markets, generating revenue through ticket sales, cargo services, and ancillary offerings across its Airline and Refinery segments.The company operates a hub-and-spoke business model centered on core domestic hubs in Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul, and Salt Lake City, supplemented by coastal positions in Boston, Los Angeles, New York-LaGuardia, New York-JFK, and Seattle, with international operations anchored in Amsterdam, Bogota, Lima, and Mexico City.Delta serves both leisure and business travelers globally, with a customer base spanning individual passengers, corporate travel programs, and cargo shippers, positioning itself as a full-service carrier competing across premium and economy segments.Delta Air Lines is one of the largest global carriers with a TTM revenue base of $68.3 billion and a market capitalization of $60.5 billion, operating approximately 100,000 employees across an extensive domestic and international network. The company's competitive strategy emphasizes operational efficiency, premium service offerings, and strategic hub positioning to capture both high-margin business travel and leisure segments. With a one-year stock price appreciation of 76.17%, Delta demonstrates strong market recovery and investor confidence in the airline sector's post-pandemic profitability trajectory.
What this transaction means for investorsYou have to be careful when reviewing insider transactions. After all, insiders sell shares for many reasons beyond simply thinking a stock is overpriced. In fact, most sales are triggered for tax purposes or as part of pre-arranged sales plans tied to compensation. In other words, investors need to dig deeper and review a company’s fundamentals before making a determination on whether a stock is a buy or sell. With that in mind, let’s have a look at Delta.
Like many airline stocks, Delta stock can be volatile. During 2020, for example, Delta shares plunged nearly 70% as air travel came to a virtual standstill. Over the last five years, Delta has delivered a total return of 135%, amounting to an excellent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.6%. That’s ahead of the S&P 500, which has recorded a total return of 87%, with a CAGR of 13.3% over the same period.
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In addition, recent results indicate that Delta continues to operate at an impressive level. The company recently beat earnings-per-share estimates in its most recent quarter, despite the steep run-up in fuel costs. Indeed, the company still provided upbeat earnings guidance despite its expectation to absorb nearly $3.5 billion in fuel inflation costs this year.
However, bears may point to the stock’s excellent performance as a potential trap. Delta’s price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio now stands at 15x. While that remains low compared to the entire stock market, it is the highest P/E multiple for Delta in more than three years, hinting that the stock may be expensive at its current valuation.
In summary, airline stocks can be difficult to own, given their volatility. Investors seeking exposure to the sector may wish to consider Delta, but should be aware that the stock’s valuation is significantly above its three-year average of 8.4x.
Well, that was fast. When legendary investor Warren Buffett stepped down as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA +0.09%) (BRKB -0.16%) on Dec. 31, many wondered whether his handpicked successor, Greg Abel, would play it safe for a quarter or two or jump right in with a bold move to differentiate himself from his predecessor.
Turns out Abel made not just one bold move, but 15 once he was in the CEO's chair. In just his first quarter as CEO, he sold 15 positions that Buffett initiated in their entirety, including some 15-year holdings. He also opened new positions in some stocks that weren't on anyone's radar.
Here's what Abel's moves should tell Berkshire shareholders about the company's future.
Image source: The Motley Fool.
Swing for the fences Abel's 15 sells include some of Berkshire's biggest winners, such as Visa (V -0.34%) and Mastercard (MA -0.35%), as well as its stake in artificial intelligence hyperscaler Amazon (AMZN +0.44%). They also include some recent bets that haven't paid off for the company. like residential pool equipment supplier Pool Corp. (POOL -1.64%), liquor company Diageo (DEO +5.88%), and pizza chain Domino's Pizza (DPZ -2.08%).
This selling spree sends a clear message that Abel won't hesitate to divest positions -- winners or losers -- for which he doesn't anticipate a market-beating return. But it's too early to call this a trend. We'll have to wait a couple of weeks to see whether his second quarter as CEO features similar big moves to his first.
One thing that does seem clear is that he's not really concerned about dividend income.
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Dividends vs. cash Although Buffett never paid a dividend to Berkshire shareholders, he loved owning dividend-paying stocks. "I do believe in dividends in a great many situations, including many of the ones at companies in which we own stock," he said in 2008. Famously, Buffett's position in Coca-Cola (KO -0.02%) now pays Berkshire more in dividends every two years (~$1.7 billion) than Buffett spent on his entire position in the stock (~$1.3 billion).
But some of the stocks Abel dumped were high-dividend-yielders, including Lamar Advertising (LAMR +2.58%), Diageo, and Pool, which currently yield 4%, 3.8%, and 2.5%, respectively. By far Abel's biggest buy was Google parent Alphabet (GOOG -0.74%) (GOOGL -0.89%), which pays only a 0.2% dividend, and his second-biggest buy was Delta Air Lines (DAL -0.52%), which yields only 1%.
Image source: Getty Images.
Berkshire's cash position also increased in Q1, from $373.3 billion at the start of the quarter to $397.4 billion at the end, suggesting that Abel is more interested in building up cash right now than in earning a return on that cash in the form of a dividend.
Maybe Abel and Buffett have some big plans for all that cash they've been hoarding. Or maybe they're just concerned about an overvalued market. Either way, investors should expect Abel to chart his own course for the company moving forward.
John Bromels has positions in Alphabet, Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, Coca-Cola, Diageo Plc, Domino's Pizza, and Mastercard. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, Domino's Pizza, Mastercard, Pool, and Visa. The Motley Fool recommends Delta Air Lines and Diageo Plc. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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Growth ScoreWhile good value is important, growth investors are more focused on a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score takes projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow into account to uncover stocks that will see long-term, sustainable growth.
Momentum ScoreMomentum trading is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook, and these investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." The Momentum Style Score can pinpoint good times to build a position in a stock, using factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates.
VGM ScoreWhat if you like to use all three types of investing? The VGM Score is a combination of all Style Scores, making it one of the most comprehensive indicators to use with the Zacks Rank. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, which helps narrow down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.
It's highly successful, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +23.94% average annual return since 1988. That's more than double the S&P 500. But because of the large number of stocks we rate, there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
But it can feel overwhelming to pick the right stocks for you and your investing goals with over 800 top-rated stocks to choose from.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
You want to make sure you're buying stocks with the highest likelihood of success, and to do that, you'll need to pick stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B. If you like a stock that only has a #3 (Hold) rank, it should also have Scores of A or B to guarantee as much upside potential as possible.
The direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should always be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy, since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank.
For instance, a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one that boasts Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings forecast, and a much greater likelihood its share price will decline as well.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) Delta Air Lines, Inc. is one of the four carriers that together account for roughly 60% of the U.S. aviation market, following industry consolidation in the early part of this century.
DAL is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.
It also boasts a Value Style Score of A thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 14.25; value investors should take notice.
Seven analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days for fiscal 2026. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $1.31 to $6.54 per share. DAL boasts an average earnings surprise of +5.5%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, DAL should be on investors' short list.
For the time being, oil prices have begun to fall as a promised resolution to the global conflict with Iran nears the finish line. While this may change by next week, this news has helped airline stocks hit multiyear highs. In fact, the US Global JETS ETF is close to eclipsing its pre-pandemic high.
Many readers may be looking for the best airline stock to buy to ride the falling oil prices. Which airline is a better bet today: Delta (DAL +0.40%) or American (AAL +0.12%)? The answer is clear when you look at the numbers.
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Faster revenue growth The airline industry experiences rising demand along with the growth of the global economy. Wealthier citizens will, on average, want to travel around the world more or visit different regions domestically than was previously viable within their annual budgets.
This generally means rising demand for airline tickets each year, except during periods like the COVID-19 pandemic. Airline brands will compete for these ticket sales, with the better customer experience likely to drive faster revenue growth, either through increased traffic or higher ticket prices.
When comparing Delta and American -- the two largest airlines in the U.S. by traffic -- it is clear which has won the revenue race coming out of the pandemic. Delta's revenue is up 180% during the last five years, compared to 138% growth for American, likely due to Delta's higher ratings, reliability, and in-flight experience. This is likely to continue in the years ahead.
Image source: Getty Images.
Loyalty ecosystem driving margin expansion For a business with high input costs, such as fuel and labor, revenue growth is not the only metric airlines should care about. Profit margins are just as important, if not more so.
The company with vastly superior profit margins is once again Delta, with an 8% operating margin versus 1.8% at American. This gap has actually widened during the past few years.
Why is Delta so much more profitable? It comes down to its superior loyalty program, which drives high-margin spending.
Delta is the leader in the U.S. among airline credit card issuers, with a long-standing partnership with American Express. Loyalty revenue grew 19% year over year last quarter for Delta, with 16% growth in remuneration from American Express of $2.4 billion. That means it is collecting about $10 billion annually from its credit card partner. American's loyalty program only drove 8% growth in card spending last quarter and is much smaller than Delta's.
DAL Total Return Level data by YCharts
Should you buy airline stocks? If you are weighing two airline stocks, it is clear Delta is the better business to bet on right now. However, when looking at stock returns across the entire industry, the case for buying airline stocks as a whole becomes much more difficult.
Airline stocks severely underperform relative to another part of the air travel supply chain: airports. Airports are local monopolies that charge these airlines every time they fly. In other words, airlines operate and pay for the flights, while airports operate as toll roads.
This superior business model is why airports have delivered strong returns for shareholders. Even for Delta, one of the best airline stocks, the returns of the Mexican airport operator Grupo Aeropuertario del Centro Norte and the Spanish operator Aena have trounced its returns during the past few years. This is because airports simply collect fees on flight traffic, while airlines have to deal with fuel costs, safety regulations, labor unions, and other expenses that can erode profit margins.
A person clamoring to buy an airline stock will do fine owning Delta. But if you want superior long-term returns, it is probably best to consider airport stocks for your portfolio instead.
Edward H. Bastian, Chief Executive Officer of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL +0.40%), sold ~207,000 shares of common stock on August 4, 2026, according to an SEC Form 4 filing.
Transaction summaryMetricValueShares sold~206,510Transaction value$19.2 millionPost-transaction shares (directly held)~1.4 millionPost-transaction value$126.49 millionTransaction value based on SEC Form 4 weighted average sale price ($92.80); post-transaction value based on August 4, 2026 market close ($92.77).
Key questionsWhat were the specific circumstances surrounding this disposition?
The transaction was an exercise-and-sell where Edward Bastian exercised 206,510 options at $49.33 and immediately sold the shares at a weighted average price of $92.80. The underlying sales were executed in multiple increments at prices ranging from $92.38 to $93.08 per share.What is the extent of the executive's remaining equity exposure?
Following the disposition, Bastian retains direct ownership of ~1.4 million shares of common stock. This position is valued at $126.49 million as of the August 4, 2026 market close, representing a significant long-term interest in the $61 billion airline.How does this sale align with the company's recent performance?
The sale occurred while the stock was priced at $92.77 as of the August 4, 2026 market close, having achieved a 77% total return over the preceding 12 months.Company OverviewMetricValueShare Price (as of market close 2026-08-04)$92.77Market Capitalization$61.0 billionRevenue (TTM)$68.3 billionNet Income (TTM)$4.0 billionCompany SnapshotDelta Air Lines provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo across domestic and international markets, generating revenue through passenger ticket sales, cargo services, and ancillary airline operations.The company operates a hub-and-spoke network model centered on core domestic hubs in Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul, and Salt Lake City, complemented by coastal positions and international hubs, enabling efficient route optimization and network connectivity.Delta serves business and leisure travelers, cargo shippers, and corporate clients through its diversified route network spanning the United States and international destinations including Europe, Latin America, and Asia-Pacific regions.Delta Air Lines is one of the largest carriers in the United States with a fleet-based competitive advantage and a strategically positioned hub network generating $68.3 billion in trailing 12-month revenue. The company operates through both airline and refinery segments, providing operational integration and margin enhancement opportunities.
With 100,000 employees and a market cap of $61 billion, Delta maintains significant scale and operational leverage in the highly competitive global aviation industry.
What this transaction means for investorsThe August 4 sale of Delta Air Lines stock by CEO Edward Bastian came at a time when shares were on an upswing. The company’s second-quarter earnings results were excellent, leading to the stock hitting a 52-week high of $95.68 in July, and the price remains elevated, as Bastian sold for a weighted average price of $92.80 per share.
Given Delta stock’s price increase, it’s no wonder why Bastian decided to sell at this time. The CEO’s trade follows a pattern common for corporate executives. He exercised stock options and immediately sold them. The options were set to expire in February of 2027, so he would have needed to exercise them soon.
Post-transaction, Bastian’s direct holdings of nearly 1.4 million shares leaves him with a substantial equity stake in Delta, ensuring continued alignment with shareholder interests. The airline posted record Q2 revenue of $19.8 billion, up from $16.6 billion in 2025.
Robert Izquierdo has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Delta Air Lines. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Arkadios Wealth Advisors reduced its stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL – Free Report) by 27.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,389 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 5,392 shares during the quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors’ holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $957,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. South Dakota Investment Council lifted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 5.6% during the first quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 119,700 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $7,958,000 after purchasing an additional 6,322 shares in the last quarter. Opal Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 1st quarter valued at $742,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Delta Air Lines by 14.9% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,447 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,093,000 after acquiring an additional 2,130 shares during the last quarter. Rokos Capital Management LLP purchased a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the first quarter worth $37,578,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Delta Air Lines by 15.6% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 195,513 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $12,998,000 after buying an additional 26,317 shares during the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Key Delta Air Lines News Here are the key news stories impacting Delta Air Lines this week:
Positive Sentiment: Crude oil prices fell for a second consecutive session, potentially lowering jet-fuel expenses and improving Delta’s profit margins if the decline persists. Lower energy costs could also ease inflationary pressure and support travel demand. Oil Just Lost its Inflation Premium: Here’s Who Wins if Prices Stay Low Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted DAL as a strong momentum stock, reflecting its recent price performance and improving investor interest. Momentum support may attract additional buying, although it does not by itself establish a change in Delta’s fundamentals. Here’s Why Delta Air Lines Is a Strong Momentum Stock Neutral Sentiment: A commentary article presents a contrarian view that higher fuel costs could potentially create benefits for Delta under certain industry or pricing conditions. However, the thesis is less immediately favorable than falling fuel prices and highlights uncertainty around fuel-cost exposure. Delta Air Lines: Higher Fuel Costs Might Produce Surprising Gains Neutral Sentiment: United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby’s reported merger approaches to Delta and American were rejected. Avoiding a major merger may limit near-term industry disruption for Delta, though United’s focus on fleet innovation could increase competitive pressure over time. Rejected but Not Retreating: United’s Future Lies in Fleet Innovation, Not M&A Insiders Place Their Bets In other Delta Air Lines news, President Peter W. Carter sold 39,900 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.98, for a total transaction of $3,709,902.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 424,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,488,977.92. The trade was a 8.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 206,510 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.80, for a total value of $19,164,128.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,363,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $126,527,974.40. The trade was a 13.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 357,876 shares of company stock valued at $32,540,723 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.
Delta Air Lines Stock Up 0.4% DAL opened at $93.13 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.31. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a one year low of $52.88 and a one year high of $95.68. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $86.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $74.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.35.
Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 9th. The transportation company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.07. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 17.52% and a net margin of 5.79%.The company had revenue of $17.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.43 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 18.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 9th were paid a $0.215 dividend. This is a boost from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. This represents a $0.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 9th. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is currently 14.26%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Seaport Research Partners upped their price target on Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $93.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Argus set a $105.00 price objective on Delta Air Lines in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Twenty-three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.40.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on DAL
About Delta Air Lines (Free Report)
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.
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It doesn't matter your age or experience: taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for all investors. Luckily, Zacks Premium offers several different ways to do both.
The popular research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor, giving you access to daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens.
Zacks Premium includes access to the Zacks Style Scores as well.
What are the Zacks Style Scores? Developed alongside the Zacks Rank, the Zacks Style Scores are a group of complementary indicators that help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics. Just like in school, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on -- that means the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value ScoreFor value investors, it's all about finding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value before the broader market catches on. The Value Style Score utilizes ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to help pick out the most attractive and discounted stocks.
Growth ScoreWhile good value is important, growth investors are more focused on a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score takes projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow into account to uncover stocks that will see long-term, sustainable growth.
Momentum ScoreMomentum investors, who live by the saying "the trend is your friend," are most interested in taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Utilizing one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, among other factors, the Momentum Style Score can help determine favorable times to buy high-momentum stocks.
VGM ScoreIf you want a combination of all three Style Scores, then the VGM Score will be your friend. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, helping you find the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum. It's also one of the best indicators to use with the Zacks Rank.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank The Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock-rating model that harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings expectations, to help investors build a successful portfolio.
#1 (Strong Buy) stocks have produced an unmatched +23.94% average annual return since 1988, which is more than double the S&P 500's performance over the same time frame. However, the Zacks Rank examines a ton of stocks, and there can be more than 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, and another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
You want to make sure you're buying stocks with the highest likelihood of success, and to do that, you'll need to pick stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B. If you like a stock that only has a #3 (Hold) rank, it should also have Scores of A or B to guarantee as much upside potential as possible.
Since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank, the direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy.
A stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, for instance, even one with Scores of A and B, will still have a declining earnings forecast, and a greater chance its share price will fall too.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) Delta Air Lines, Inc. is one of the four carriers that together account for roughly 60% of the U.S. aviation market, following industry consolidation in the early part of this century.
DAL is a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of B.
Momentum investors should take note of this Transportation stock. DAL has a Momentum Style Score of B, and shares are up 4.7% over the past four weeks.
Seven analysts revised their earnings estimate higher in the last 60 days for fiscal 2026, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $1.31 to $6.54 per share. DAL also boasts an average earnings surprise of +5.5%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Momentum and VGM Style Scores, DAL should be on investors' short list.
Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.
Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.
Choosing between Archer Aviation (ACHR -2.11%) and Delta Air Lines (DAL -1.30%) requires weighing the speculative potential of urban air travel against the reliable cash flows of an established titan of the commercial aviation industry.
Archer Aviation is developing futuristic electric aircraft designed to transform how people move through congested cities. Delta Air Lines, meanwhile, provides traditional long-haul and regional travel services while generating significant cash flow from its global network. These companies represent different risk profiles, offering a choice between high-growth potential and the stability of a market leader.
The case for Archer AviationArcher Aviation’s commercial strategy relies on a conditional purchase agreement with United Airlines for up to $1.5 billion worth of its Midnight aircraft. Customer concentration like this adds a layer of risk to the business, though it also provides a massive potential order backlog for the future. The company also collaborates with the U.S. Air Force and has a manufacturing relationship with Stellantis to support high-volume production of its electric vertical takeoff-and-landing vehicles.
In FY 2025, Archer Aviation generated revenue of approximately $300,000 as it began navigating its early development and testing milestones. During the same period, the company reported a net loss of nearly $618.2 million, which is common for companies in the pre-commercial phase of aerospace engineering. This net loss reflects the significant capital required for research, development, and the pursuit of necessary flight certifications.
As of its December 2025 balance sheet, Archer Aviation had a debt-to-equity ratio of roughly 0.1x, which measures its total debt obligations relative to its shareholder equity. The current ratio, a metric used to determine if a company can cover its short-term debts with short-term assets, was approximately 19.9x. Free cash flow for the year was nearly negative $511.7 million, representing the cash used in operations and equipment purchases as the company funds its growth.
The case for Delta Air LinesDelta Air Lines operates a massive global network serving more than 300 destinations across six continents and is a prominent name among industrial stocks. A key driver of its long-term financial health is the SkyMiles loyalty program, which is anchored by a lucrative $8.2 billion co-brand agreement with American Express. The airline also manages several international joint ventures with partners like Air France-KLM and Korean Air Lines to expand its global footprint.
In FY 2025, Delta reported revenue of nearly $63.4 billion, which represented a growth of roughly 2.8% compared to the prior fiscal year. The company generated a net income of approximately $5.0 billion, demonstrating its ability to maintain consistent profitability in a competitive market. This performance resulted in a net margin of close to 7.9%, which measures how much of every dollar in revenue actually becomes profit.
As of its December 2025 balance sheet, Delta’s debt-to-equity ratio was approximately 1.0x, indicating its total debt is roughly equal to its total shareholder equity. The current ratio stood at close to 0.4x, suggesting that the company's short-term liabilities currently exceed its short-term assets. Free cash flow for FY 2025 was nearly $3.8 billion, which is the cash a company generates after accounting for cash outflows to support operations and maintain its capital assets.
Risk profile comparisonArcher Aviation faces significant regulatory hurdles as it seeks FAA type certification for its aircraft, a process where any delay could significantly increase costs. The company also operates with a history of net losses and will likely need to raise more capital to fund its manufacturing and infrastructure build-out. Furthermore, it relies on conditional agreements with partners like United Airlines Holdings, meaning any failure to finalize material terms could severely harm its revenue expectations.
Delta is vulnerable to operational disruptions and infrastructure failures, such as the IT system issues seen during the 2024 CrowdStrike outage. Its financial results are also highly sensitive to the price of fuel and broader economic cycles that can cause fluctuations in travel demand. Additionally, the company must manage the costs of complying with strict environmental regulations and the potential liability associated with transitioning to sustainable aviation fuels.
Valuation comparisonDelta Air Lines is significantly cheaper than Archer Aviation based on its P/S ratio.
MetricArcher AviationDelta Air LinesForward P/EN/A10.4xP/S ratio1,855x 0.9xValuation metrics sourced from Financial Modeling Prep (FMP) and may differ from other data providers.
I'd go with Delta Air Lines. To give Archer its due, the company is making faster progress toward FAA certification than any other eVTOL competitor, and its United Airlines partnership adds a layer of credibility that most start-ups in this space can't claim. For investors with a very long horizon and a high tolerance for risk, Archer is a fascinating company worth watching.
But Delta is clearly a business that’s firing on all cylinders right now. The airline just posted record revenue while absorbing the highest quarterly fuel expense in its history, beat earnings estimates, raised its dividend, and reaffirmed a strong full-year outlook projecting earnings growth of around 20% year over year. Premium and corporate travel demand is accelerating across every sector, and the SkyMiles loyalty program was ranked the most valuable airline loyalty program in the world.
For a long-term investor, owning the profitable, cash-generating airline while the eVTOL industry sorts out its partnerships and timelines is a more straightforward path than betting on an air taxi that still needs FAA approval.
When deciding whether to buy, sell, or hold a stock, investors often rely on analyst recommendations. Media reports about rating changes by these brokerage-firm-employed (or sell-side) analysts often influence a stock's price, but are they really important?
Let's take a look at what these Wall Street heavyweights have to say about Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) before we discuss the reliability of brokerage recommendations and how to use them to your advantage.
Delta currently has an average brokerage recommendation (ABR) of 1.16, on a scale of 1 to 5 (Strong Buy to Strong Sell), calculated based on the actual recommendations (Buy, Hold, Sell, etc.) made by 25 brokerage firms. An ABR of 1.16 approximates between Strong Buy and Buy.
Of the 25 recommendations that derive the current ABR, 22 are Strong Buy and two are Buy. Strong Buy and Buy respectively account for 88% and 8% of all recommendations.
Brokerage Recommendation Trends for DAL
Check price target & stock forecast for Delta here>>>
The ABR suggests buying Delta, but making an investment decision solely on the basis of this information might not be a good idea. According to several studies, brokerage recommendations have little to no success guiding investors to choose stocks with the most potential for price appreciation.
Do you wonder why? As a result of the vested interest of brokerage firms in a stock they cover, their analysts tend to rate it with a strong positive bias. According to our research, brokerage firms assign five "Strong Buy" recommendations for every "Strong Sell" recommendation.
This means that the interests of these institutions are not always aligned with those of retail investors, giving little insight into the direction of a stock's future price movement. It would therefore be best to use this information to validate your own analysis or a tool that has proven to be highly effective at predicting stock price movements.
Zacks Rank, our proprietary stock rating tool with an impressive externally audited track record, categorizes stocks into five groups, ranging from Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) to Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), and is an effective indicator of a stock's price performance in the near future. Therefore, using the ABR to validate the Zacks Rank could be an efficient way of making a profitable investment decision.
ABR Should Not Be Confused With Zacks RankIn spite of the fact that Zacks Rank and ABR both appear on a scale from 1 to 5, they are two completely different measures.
Broker recommendations are the sole basis for calculating the ABR, which is typically displayed in decimals (such as 1.28). The Zacks Rank, on the other hand, is a quantitative model designed to harness the power of earnings estimate revisions. It is displayed in whole numbers -- 1 to 5.
It has been and continues to be the case that analysts employed by brokerage firms are overly optimistic with their recommendations. Because of their employers' vested interests, these analysts issue more favorable ratings than their research would support, misguiding investors far more often than helping them.
On the other hand, earnings estimate revisions are at the core of the Zacks Rank. And empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.
In addition, the different Zacks Rank grades are applied proportionately to all stocks for which brokerage analysts provide current-year earnings estimates. In other words, this tool always maintains a balance among its five ranks.
Another key difference between the ABR and Zacks Rank is freshness. The ABR is not necessarily up-to-date when you look at it. But, since brokerage analysts keep revising their earnings estimates to account for a company's changing business trends, and their actions get reflected in the Zacks Rank quickly enough, it is always timely in indicating future price movements.
Is DAL a Good Investment?In terms of earnings estimate revisions for Delta, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has increased 21.9% over the past month to $6.54.
Analysts' growing optimism over the company's earnings prospects, as indicated by strong agreement among them in revising EPS estimates higher, could be a legitimate reason for the stock to soar in the near term.
The size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, has resulted in a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) for Delta. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>
Therefore, the Buy-equivalent ABR for Delta may serve as a useful guide for investors.
For those looking to find strong Transportation stocks, it is prudent to search for companies in the group that are outperforming their peers. Is Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) one of those stocks right now? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Transportation peers, we might be able to answer that question.
Delta Air Lines is one of 110 individual stocks in the Transportation sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #1 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank includes 16 different groups and is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors.
The Zacks Rank is a proven system that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions, highlighting a variety of stocks that are displaying the right characteristics to beat the market over the next one to three months. Delta Air Lines is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for DAL's full-year earnings has moved 28.6% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
According to our latest data, DAL has moved about 24.3% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Transportation group have gained about 14.9% on average. This means that Delta Air Lines is performing better than its sector in terms of year-to-date returns.
Another Transportation stock, which has outperformed the sector so far this year, is Union Pacific (UNP - Free Report) . The stock has returned 26.3% year-to-date.
Over the past three months, Union Pacific's consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 2.9%. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
To break things down more, Delta Air Lines belongs to the Transportation - Airline industry, a group that includes 28 individual companies and currently sits at #150 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have lost about 2.9% so far this year, so DAL is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.
Union Pacific, however, belongs to the Transportation - Rail industry. Currently, this 9-stock industry is ranked #64. The industry has moved +27.7% so far this year.
Delta Air Lines and Union Pacific could continue their solid performance, so investors interested in Transportation stocks should continue to pay close attention to these stocks.
Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) has recently been on Zacks.com's list of the most searched stocks. Therefore, you might want to consider some of the key factors that could influence the stock's performance in the near future.
Over the past month, shares of this airline have returned -7.3%, compared to the Zacks S&P 500 composite's -1.5% change. During this period, the Zacks Transportation - Airline industry, which Delta falls in, has lost 13.8%. The key question now is: What could be the stock's future direction?
While media releases or rumors about a substantial change in a company's business prospects usually make its stock 'trending' and lead to an immediate price change, there are always some fundamental facts that eventually dominate the buy-and-hold decision-making.
Revisions to Earnings EstimatesRather than focusing on anything else, we at Zacks prioritize evaluating the change in a company's earnings projection. This is because we believe the fair value for its stock is determined by the present value of its future stream of earnings.
Our analysis is essentially based on how sell-side analysts covering the stock are revising their earnings estimates to take the latest business trends into account. When earnings estimates for a company go up, the fair value for its stock goes up as well. And when a stock's fair value is higher than its current market price, investors tend to buy the stock, resulting in its price moving upward. Because of this, empirical studies indicate a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and short-term stock price movements.
Delta is expected to post earnings of $2.19 per share for the current quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +28.1%. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed +26%.
The consensus earnings estimate of $6.54 for the current fiscal year indicates a year-over-year change of +12.4%. This estimate has changed +21.9% over the last 30 days.
For the next fiscal year, the consensus earnings estimate of $8.74 indicates a change of +33.7% from what Delta is expected to report a year ago. Over the past month, the estimate has changed +10.6%.
Having a strong externally audited track record, our proprietary stock rating tool, the Zacks Rank, offers a more conclusive picture of a stock's price direction in the near term, since it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions. Due to the size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, Delta is rated Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
The chart below shows the evolution of the company's forward 12-month consensus EPS estimate:
12 Month EPS
Revenue Growth ForecastWhile earnings growth is arguably the most superior indicator of a company's financial health, nothing happens as such if a business isn't able to grow its revenues. After all, it's nearly impossible for a company to increase its earnings for an extended period without increasing its revenues. So, it's important to know a company's potential revenue growth.
For Delta, the consensus sales estimate for the current quarter of $17.68 billion indicates a year-over-year change of +6%. For the current and next fiscal years, $66.56 billion and $69.36 billion estimates indicate +5% and +4.2% changes, respectively.
Last Reported Results and Surprise HistoryDelta reported revenues of $17.67 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +6.1%. EPS of $1.56 for the same period compares with $2.1 a year ago.
Compared to the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $17.76 billion, the reported revenues represent a surprise of -0.53%. The EPS surprise was +3.31%.
The company beat consensus EPS estimates in each of the trailing four quarters. The company topped consensus revenue estimates three times over this period.
ValuationWithout considering a stock's valuation, no investment decision can be efficient. In predicting a stock's future price performance, it's crucial to determine whether its current price correctly reflects the intrinsic value of the underlying business and the company's growth prospects.
While comparing the current values of a company's valuation multiples, such as price-to-earnings (P/E), price-to-sales (P/S), and price-to-cash flow (P/CF), with its own historical values helps determine whether its stock is fairly valued, overvalued, or undervalued, comparing the company relative to its peers on these parameters gives a good sense of the reasonability of the stock's price.
As part of the Zacks Style Scores system, the Zacks Value Style Score (which evaluates both traditional and unconventional valuation metrics) organizes stocks into five groups ranging from A to F (A is better than B; B is better than C; and so on), making it helpful in identifying whether a stock is overvalued, rightly valued, or temporarily undervalued.
Delta is graded A on this front, indicating that it is trading at a discount to its peers. Click here to see the values of some of the valuation metrics that have driven this grade.
ConclusionThe facts discussed here and much other information on Zacks.com might help determine whether or not it's worthwhile paying attention to the market buzz about Delta. However, its Zacks Rank #2 does suggest that it may outperform the broader market in the near term.
Despite a challenging macroeconomic backdrop, airline stocks have performed well over the past year. This is especially true for Delta Air Lines (DAL +1.81%). Shares in the legacy carrier have soared by nearly 50% in the past 12 months, trouncing the performance of even the S&P 500, which has delivered total returns of around 18% during the same time.
The key takeaway with Delta's outperformance is not that the stock has thrived despite operational headwinds. Make no mistake: Delta hasn't made moonshot moves due to "meme mania." Instead, improved results have driven this stock's strong performance.
Moreover, even after Delta's wave of outperformance, shares could reach even higher altitudes in the months ahead. Here's why.
Image source: Getty Images.
Delta and its wave of market outperformance Much of Delta's strong run occurred after this year's energy supply shock, not before it. Back in March, when the geopolitical tensions in the Middle East caused crude oil prices to spike above $100 per barrel, Delta and other airline stocks briefly pulled back. Yet during the spring and summer, Delta shares surged even higher. Admittedly, an easing in energy prices after the initial shock likely contributed most greatly to this resurgence.
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Yet while Delta has pulled back since its latest quarterly earnings release, Q2 2026 results contained quite a few green shoots for the remainder of the full year. For one, during the preceding quarter, Delta largely absorbed the impact of higher jet fuel prices. While aircraft fuel costs increased by around $1.65 billion year over year, the carrier reported just a $238 million decrease in operating income.
Chalk up this resilience largely to continued success with Delta's "premiumization" strategy. The airline now generates greater revenue from first-class ticket sales and upgrades than from main cabin ticket sales. It's therefore not surprising that management reiterated its full-year earnings guidance of between $6.50 and $7.50 per share.
More room to soar if resilience persists Investors may have reacted somewhat negatively to Delta's latest earnings, but don't assume this transportation stock's rally will keep reversing course. For results to meet or beat expectations, Delta needs to remain able to pass along the cost of higher fuel costs to passengers, while at the same time lowering capacity and maintaining similar levels of travel demand.
Put simply, I believe Delta can easily thread this needle, even as Mideast tensions and, in turn, fuel prices, spike once again. So far, travel demand, particularly for premium travel, has yet to ease. U.S.-based carriers also continue to reduce capacity. For now, the ingredients remain in place for Delta to deliver solid results this year.
If this occurs, and earnings hit the high end of the aforementioned forecasts, the impact on Delta shares could be tremendous, even if the stock experiences a moderate rerating to 15 times forward earnings. Apply this against the top end of analyst forecasts, and one gets a price target of around $112.50 per share, or over 37% above Delta's current stock price.
Given this potential if current conditions hold, Delta's post-earnings pullback represents a strong buying opportunity.
United Airlines reportedly approached Delta Air Lines last year about a potential merger that would have combined two of the largest U.S. carriers.
United CEO Scott Kirby contacted Delta CEO Ed Bastian to pitch the potential tie-up, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter.
According to the outlet, leadership at Delta discussed the proposal and evaluated the potential benefits as part of "preliminary due diligence," but the talks did not advance, and both airlines ultimately moved on.
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A United Airlines Boeing 777 lands at Newark Liberty International Airport on Jan. 29, 2026, in Newark, New Jersey. United Airlines reportedly approached Delta Air Lines last year about a potential merger. (Gary Hershorn/Getty Images)
A United spokesperson told FOX Business the airline had "nothing to share." Delta declined to comment.
A merger between United and Delta would have had sweeping implications for the airline industry and likely faced scrutiny from federal antitrust regulators and state attorneys general, according to The Wall Street Journal.
NEW BOEING AIRCRAFT DEVELOPMENT HAMPERED BY BACKLOG OF EXISTING ORDERS, SAYS CEO
A Delta Air Lines Airbus A220-100 approaches John F. Kennedy International Airport with its landing gear down on Nov. 14, 2019, in New York City. United CEO Scott Kirby reportedly contacted Delta CEO Ed Bastian to pitch the potential tie-up. (Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The previously unreported talks come as United works to expand its global reach.
Kirby also reportedly explored a possible merger with American Airlines earlier this year. However, American rejected the proposal, and CEO Robert Isom criticized the idea as "anticompetitive," the WSJ reported.
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United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby speaks at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Aerospace Summit in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 9, 2025. Kirby has since downplayed the likelihood that United will pursue a major merger. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Stocks In This Article: Kirby has since downplayed the likelihood that United will pursue a major merger.
Last month, Kirby told Reuters that United remained open to buying airport slots, gates and other assets, but said a major consolidation deal was unlikely.
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"I think consolidation is unlikely for United," Kirby said at the International Air Transport Association’s annual meeting in Rio de Janeiro. "That doesn't mean we won't still be in the market to buy assets, but consolidation is a low probability."
The second-quarter earnings season for the Zacks Transportation sector kicked off on July 10, with Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) exceeding bottom-line estimates. A couple of other S&P 500 components — United Airlines (UAL - Free Report) and J.B. Hunt Transport Services (JBHT - Free Report) — have also reported quarterly numbers since Delta. A host of transportation companies are due to report their respective financial numbers shortly.
Per the Earnings Preview report dated July 17, while the transportation sector’s earnings for second-quarter 2026 are expected to decline 4.5%, revenues are likely to grow 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. We have identified — with the help of the Zacks Stock Screener — a few transportation players that are set to outshine the Zacks Consensus Estimate with respect to the bottom line this earnings season.
These include Union Pacific Corporation (UNP - Free Report) , Norfolk Southern Corporation (NSC - Free Report) , Old Dominion Freight Line (ODFL - Free Report) and United Parcel Service (UPS - Free Report) . Before we discuss the companies, let’s take a look at the factors shaping the quarterly performance.
Factors at PlayThe transportation market held up better than many expected in the second quarter of 2026. Despite geopolitical tensions and elevated fuel prices, factors like buoyant air-travel demand and the improving freight scenario seem to have supported the transportation companies. It seems that most people have adapted to the still-high inflation, high interest rates and policy uncertainty, choosing to adjust their budget accordingly.
Following a prolonged period of downturn, things appear to be brightening as far as freight demand is concerned.Highlighting the brightening freight demand scenario, the Cass Freight Shipments Index improved 3% month on month in May 2026. This measure has improved month on month in four of the past five months, which confirms the improving scenario. The 1.2% year-over-year May decrease with respect to the Cass Freight Shipments Index was the smallest reduction in the past 18 months, further attesting to the improvement. Moreover, many watchers expect freight rates to increase in the current year.
In a bid to improve efficiency, companies are investing big time in AI, thereby reducing the cost structure and promoting safety. Cost optimization and automation are helping protect profitability. Increased efficiencies through cost-reduction measures are likely to have boosted the bottom-line performance in the June quarter.
Additionally, second-quarter performance of most shipping stocks in the sector is likely to have been boosted by the resilience displayed by the dry bulk sector owing to factors like rising Chinese demand for minor bulk and high vessel utilization.
Picking Potential WinnersWhile it is not possible to be sure about which companies are well-positioned to beat earnings estimates, our proprietary methodology — Earnings ESP — makes it relatively simple. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.
The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat. Earnings ESP shows the percentage difference between the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Our research shows that for stocks with the abovementioned combination, the chances of an earnings beat are as high as 70%.
For investors seeking to apply this proven model to their portfolio, we have highlighted four Transportation stocks that are poised to beat second-quarter earnings estimates.
Headquartered in Omaha, NE, Union Pacific operates a rail network spanning 23 states across the western two-thirds of the United States, serving as a vital component of the global supply chain. The railroad operator currently has an Earnings ESP of +0.34% and a Zacks Rank of 3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The company is scheduled to report its second-quarter 2026 results on July 23. Union Pacific’s efforts to reward its shareholders through dividends and share buybacks are commendable. With the freight scene on the mend, the company’s performance is likely to have been aided. The company’s earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters (missing the mark on the other occasion), with the average beat being 2.3%.
Norfolk Southern is another railroad operator. The company currently has an Earnings ESP of +0.21% and a Zacks Rank of 3. Cost cuts and an improving freight scenario should aid its second-quarter results.
The company is scheduled to report its second-quarter 2026 results on July 23. Norfolk Southern’s efforts to reward its shareholders through dividends and share buybacks are commendable. The company’s earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters, with the average beat being 6.5%.
Old Dominion Freight Line is a leading less-than-truckload or LTL company. The trucking company is based in Thomasville, NC. The company has an Earnings ESP of +1.02% and a Zacks Rank of 2.
Old Dominion, whose second-quarter results are likely to be aided by the brightening freight environment, is scheduled to report its second-quarter 2026 results on July 29. Old Dominion’s efforts to reward its shareholders through dividends and share buybacks are commendable. The company’s earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters (missing the mark once), with the average beat being 3.7%.
United Parcel Service’s second-quarter results are likely to reflect its focus on improving profitability over sheer volume. Under the cost-cutting initiatives, UPS has substantially reduced its U.S. operational workforce and closed daily operations at multiple leased and owned buildings. Moreover, UPS has been focusing on increasing automation in sorting and operations, and leveraging AI for logistics planning to boost efficiency.
The shift in focus toward higher-margin areas such as small and medium-sized businesses, or SMBs and healthcare logistics from low-margin volumes is expected to be reflected in UPS’ second-quarter results, scheduled to be released on July 28, and to aid its per-package revenues. The company’s earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters (missing the mark once), with the average beat being 10.6%. The company has an Earnings ESP of +1.06% and a Zacks Rank of 3.
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Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL – Free Report) by 105.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,018 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,012 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $2,595,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. SWAN Capital LLC boosted its position in Delta Air Lines by 1,016.0% in the third quarter. SWAN Capital LLC now owns 558 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. Camelot Portfolios LLC acquired a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in Delta Air Lines by 451.6% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 524 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Delta Air Lines Stock Up 0.1% NYSE:DAL opened at $84.61 on Wednesday. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a one year low of $50.44 and a one year high of $95.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The company has a market cap of $55.64 billion, a PE ratio of 14.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $83.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.29.
Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 9th. The transportation company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $17.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.43 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 17.52%. The company’s revenue was up 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.10 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.66 earnings per share for the current year.
Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 9th will be given a dividend of $0.215 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio is 14.26%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Delta Air Lines In other news, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.44, for a total value of $2,036,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 95,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,738,836. This represents a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Allison C. Ausband sold 9,710 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total value of $737,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 138,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,552,904. This represents a 6.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 65,331 shares of company stock valued at $5,036,638. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades DAL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Seaport Research Partners upped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $112.00 price target on Delta Air Lines in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Argus set a $105.00 price objective on Delta Air Lines in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Twenty-three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.40.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Delta Air Lines
About Delta Air Lines (Free Report)
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.
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Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) appears an attractive pick, as it has been recently upgraded to a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). This rating change essentially reflects an upward trend in earnings estimates -- one of the most powerful forces impacting stock prices.
The Zacks rating relies solely on a company's changing earnings picture. It tracks EPS estimates for the current and following years from the sell-side analysts covering the stock through a consensus measure -- the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Since a changing earnings picture is a powerful factor influencing near-term stock price movements, the Zacks rating system is very useful for individual investors. They may find it difficult to make decisions based on rating upgrades by Wall Street analysts, as these are mostly driven by subjective factors that are hard to see and measure in real time.
As such, the Zacks rating upgrade for Delta is essentially a positive comment on its earnings outlook that could have a favorable impact on its stock price.
Most Powerful Force Impacting Stock PricesThe change in a company's future earnings potential, as reflected in earnings estimate revisions, has proven to be strongly correlated with the near-term price movement of its stock. That's partly because of the influence of institutional investors that use earnings and earnings estimates for calculating the fair value of a company's shares. An increase or decrease in earnings estimates in their valuation models simply results in higher or lower fair value for a stock, and institutional investors typically buy or sell it. Their transaction of large amounts of shares then leads to price movement for the stock.
For Delta, rising earnings estimates and the consequent rating upgrade fundamentally mean an improvement in the company's underlying business. And investors' appreciation of this improving business trend should push the stock higher.
Harnessing the Power of Earnings Estimate RevisionsAs empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock movements, tracking such revisions for making an investment decision could be truly rewarding. Here is where the tried-and-tested Zacks Rank stock-rating system plays an important role, as it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions.
The Zacks Rank stock-rating system, which uses four factors related to earnings estimates to classify stocks into five groups, ranging from Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) to Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive externally-audited track record, with Zacks Rank #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>> .
Earnings Estimate Revisions for DeltaFor the fiscal year ending December 2026, this airline is expected to earn $6.66 per share, which is unchanged compared with the year-ago reported number.
Analysts have been steadily raising their estimates for Delta. Over the past three months, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company has increased 31%.
Bottom LineUnlike the overly optimistic Wall Street analysts whose rating systems tend to be weighted toward favorable recommendations, the Zacks rating system maintains an equal proportion of "buy" and "sell" ratings for its entire universe of more than 4,000 stocks at any point in time. Irrespective of market conditions, only the top 5% of the Zacks-covered stocks get a "Strong Buy" rating and the next 15% get a "Buy" rating. So, the placement of a stock in the top 20% of the Zacks-covered stocks indicates its superior earnings estimate revision feature, making it a solid candidate for producing market-beating returns in the near term.
You can learn more about the Zacks Rank here >>>
The upgrade of Delta to a Zacks Rank #2 positions it in the top 20% of the Zacks-covered stocks in terms of estimate revisions, implying that the stock might move higher in the near term.
While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks, we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies. With this in mind, we are always looking at value, growth, and momentum trends to discover great companies.
Considering these trends, value investing is clearly one of the most preferred ways to find strong stocks in any type of market. Value investors use tried-and-true metrics and fundamental analysis to find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels.
Zacks has developed the innovative Style Scores system to highlight stocks with specific traits. For example, value investors will be interested in stocks with great grades in the "Value" category. When paired with a high Zacks Rank, "A" grades in the Value category are among the strongest value stocks on the market today.
One stock to keep an eye on is Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) . DAL is currently sporting a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), as well as a Value grade of A. The stock is trading with a P/E ratio of 9.13, which compares to its industry's average of 10.78. Over the past 52 weeks, DAL's Forward P/E has been as high as 9.94 and as low as 5.04, with a median of 8.52.
Another valuation metric that we should highlight is DAL's P/B ratio of 2.24. The P/B is a method of comparing a stock's market value to its book value, which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities. This stock's P/B looks solid versus its industry's average P/B of 3.07. Over the past 12 months, DAL's P/B has been as high as 3.11 and as low as 1.52, with a median of 2.29.
Finally, investors should note that DAL has a P/CF ratio of 5.57. This metric focuses on a firm's operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook. This company's current P/CF looks solid when compared to its industry's average P/CF of 6.58. Over the past 52 weeks, DAL's P/CF has been as high as 7.54 and as low as 3.79, with a median of 5.32.
United Airlines (UAL - Free Report) may be another strong Transportation - Airline stock to add to your shortlist. UAL is a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) stock with a Value grade of A.
United Airlines is trading at a forward earnings multiple of 8.98 at the moment, with a PEG ratio of 1.19. This compares to its industry's average P/E of 10.78 and average PEG ratio of 0.48.
UAL's price-to-earnings ratio has been as high as 9.45 and as low as 4.45, with a median of 7.52, while its PEG ratio has been as high as 1.40 and as low as 0.37, with a median of 1.00, all within the past year.
Additionally, United Airlines has a P/B ratio of 2.57 while its industry's price-to-book ratio sits at 3.07. For UAL, this valuation metric has been as high as 2.95, as low as 1.45, with a median of 2.19 over the past year.
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at, but they help show that Delta Air Lines and United Airlines are likely being undervalued right now. Considering this, as well as the strength of its earnings outlook, DAL and UAL feels like a great value stock at the moment.
The Wall Street analyst consensus target price for Delta Air Lines (DAL +0.44%) stock is $108, according to Visible Alpha. It's a target implying 25% upside from the current price of $86. I think this target, and more, is achievable, and the stock is attractive at these levels. Here's why.
Delta Air Lines and cyclicality Starting with valuations, management expects to generate $3 billion to $4 billion in free cash flow (FCF) in 2026. Taking the midpoint of that and applying a back-of-the-envelope valuation for a mature industrial stock at about a 20x multiple yields a market cap of $70 billion, equivalent to a share price of about $106.
Image source: Getty Images.
Of course, the key question here is whether Delta is a mature, stable industrial company poised to steadily grow cash flow, or a cyclical stock whose earnings/cash flow are likely to be highly volatile.
Why Delta's earnings are becoming less cyclical The answer is that airline stocks are never really immune to cyclical pressures. The economy turns down, and people stop flying. However, the reality is that airlines like Delta and United Airlines have made concerted efforts to diversify their income streams by growing premium cabin and ancillary revenues, loyalty programs, and highly successful co-branded credit card revenue.
These income streams and ongoing strength in end demand helped Delta partially absorb a whopping $1.9 billion year-over-year increase in adjusted fuel costs in the second quarter, so that adjusted operating income declined by only $501 million year over year. Nevertheless, Delta still generated $1.56 billion in adjusted operating income.
It's an excellent result in a very difficult cost environment, and given that oil costs have moderated from the $100-a-barrel levels they were at for much of Q2, it's reasonable to expect more favorable conditions going forward.
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0.44
%) $
0.37
Current Price
$
84.54
Delta's valuation is attractive Moreover, Delta has already baked a $4 billion increase in fuel costs for 2026 into its guidance, and it still expects $3 billion to $4 billion in free cash flow.
This is proof positive that Delta is passing a key stress test of how it might perform in adverse conditions, which means it should be priced more like a mature industrial than a highly cyclical stock. If Delta achieves its earnings-per-share guidance of $6.50 to $7.50, that puts it at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 11.5 to 13.2 times earnings. Whether you look at cash flow or earnings, these are attractive multiples for a stock that's much less cyclical than many investors think, and $100 looks within reach on that basis.
Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.
The popular research service can help you become a smarter, more self-assured investor, giving you access to daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens.
It also includes access to the Zacks Style Scores.
What are the Zacks Style Scores? Developed alongside the Zacks Rank, the Zacks Style Scores are a group of complementary indicators that help investors pick stocks with the best chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Each stock is given an alphabetic rating of A, B, C, D or F based on their value, growth, and momentum qualities. With this system, an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on, meaning the better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value ScoreFor value investors, it's all about finding good stocks at good prices, and discovering which companies are trading under their true value before the broader market catches on. The Value Style Score utilizes ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and a host of other multiples to help pick out the most attractive and discounted stocks.
Growth ScoreGrowth investors, on the other hand, are more concerned with a company's financial strength and health, and its future outlook. The Growth Style Score examines things like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will experience sustainable growth over time.
Momentum ScoreMomentum traders and investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." This investing style is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Employing factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, the Momentum Style Score can indicate favorable times to build a position in high-momentum stocks.
VGM ScoreIf you want a combination of all three Style Scores, then the VGM Score will be your friend. It rates each stock on their combined weighted styles, helping you find the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum. It's also one of the best indicators to use with the Zacks Rank.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.
Investors can count on the Zacks Rank's success, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +23.94% average annual return since 1988, more than double the S&P 500's performance. But the model rates a large number of stocks, and there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.
Since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank, the direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy.
Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) Delta Air Lines, Inc. is one of the four carriers that together account for roughly 60% of the U.S. aviation market, following industry consolidation in the early part of this century.
DAL is a #2 (Buy) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of A.
Momentum investors should take note of this Transportation stock. DAL has a Momentum Style Score of A, and shares are up 2.9% over the past four weeks.
Seven analysts revised their earnings estimate upwards in the last 60 days for fiscal 2026. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.99 to $6.32 per share. DAL boasts an average earnings surprise of +5.5%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Momentum and VGM Style Scores, DAL should be on investors' short list.
When deciding whether to buy, sell, or hold a stock, investors often rely on analyst recommendations. Media reports about rating changes by these brokerage-firm-employed (or sell-side) analysts often influence a stock's price, but are they really important?
Before we discuss the reliability of brokerage recommendations and how to use them to your advantage, let's see what these Wall Street heavyweights think about Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) .
Delta currently has an average brokerage recommendation (ABR) of 1.16, on a scale of 1 to 5 (Strong Buy to Strong Sell), calculated based on the actual recommendations (Buy, Hold, Sell, etc.) made by 25 brokerage firms. An ABR of 1.16 approximates between Strong Buy and Buy.
Of the 25 recommendations that derive the current ABR, 22 are Strong Buy and two are Buy. Strong Buy and Buy respectively account for 88% and 8% of all recommendations.
Brokerage Recommendation Trends for DAL
Check price target & stock forecast for Delta here>>>
The ABR suggests buying Delta, but making an investment decision solely on the basis of this information might not be a good idea. According to several studies, brokerage recommendations have little to no success guiding investors to choose stocks with the most potential for price appreciation.
Do you wonder why? As a result of the vested interest of brokerage firms in a stock they cover, their analysts tend to rate it with a strong positive bias. According to our research, brokerage firms assign five "Strong Buy" recommendations for every "Strong Sell" recommendation.
This means that the interests of these institutions are not always aligned with those of retail investors, giving little insight into the direction of a stock's future price movement. It would therefore be best to use this information to validate your own analysis or a tool that has proven to be highly effective at predicting stock price movements.
With an impressive externally audited track record, our proprietary stock rating tool, the Zacks Rank, which classifies stocks into five groups, ranging from Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) to Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell), is a reliable indicator of a stock's near-term price performance. So, validating the Zacks Rank with ABR could go a long way in making a profitable investment decision.
ABR Should Not Be Confused With Zacks RankIn spite of the fact that Zacks Rank and ABR both appear on a scale from 1 to 5, they are two completely different measures.
Broker recommendations are the sole basis for calculating the ABR, which is typically displayed in decimals (such as 1.28). The Zacks Rank, on the other hand, is a quantitative model designed to harness the power of earnings estimate revisions. It is displayed in whole numbers -- 1 to 5.
Analysts employed by brokerage firms have been and continue to be overly optimistic with their recommendations. Since the ratings issued by these analysts are more favorable than their research would support because of the vested interest of their employers, they mislead investors far more often than they guide.
On the other hand, earnings estimate revisions are at the core of the Zacks Rank. And empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near-term stock price movements.
Furthermore, the different grades of the Zacks Rank are applied proportionately across all stocks for which brokerage analysts provide earnings estimates for the current year. In other words, at all times, this tool maintains a balance among the five ranks it assigns.
Another key difference between the ABR and Zacks Rank is freshness. The ABR is not necessarily up-to-date when you look at it. But, since brokerage analysts keep revising their earnings estimates to account for a company's changing business trends, and their actions get reflected in the Zacks Rank quickly enough, it is always timely in indicating future price movements.
Is DAL a Good Investment?In terms of earnings estimate revisions for Delta, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has increased 29.7% over the past month to $5.92.
Analysts' growing optimism over the company's earnings prospects, as indicated by strong agreement among them in revising EPS estimates higher, could be a legitimate reason for the stock to soar in the near term.
The size of the recent change in the consensus estimate, along with three other factors related to earnings estimates, has resulted in a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) for Delta. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>
Therefore, the Buy-equivalent ABR for Delta may serve as a useful guide for investors.
The Transportation group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? A quick glance at the company's year-to-date performance in comparison to the rest of the Transportation sector should help us answer this question.
Delta Air Lines is one of 110 individual stocks in the Transportation sector. Collectively, these companies sit at #1 in the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.
The Zacks Rank emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks. This system has a long record of success, and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months. Delta Air Lines is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
Over the past 90 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for DAL's full-year earnings has moved 31.8% higher. This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock's earnings outlook is improving.
Our latest available data shows that DAL has returned about 24.2% since the start of the calendar year. Meanwhile, the Transportation sector has returned an average of 17.1% on a year-to-date basis. This shows that Delta Air Lines is outperforming its peers so far this year.
Another stock in the Transportation sector, Allegiant Travel (ALGT - Free Report) , has outperformed the sector so far this year. The stock's year-to-date return is 25.4%.
In Allegiant Travel's case, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year increased 67.7% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Looking more specifically, Delta Air Lines belongs to the Transportation - Airline industry, a group that includes 28 individual stocks and currently sits at #84 in the Zacks Industry Rank. On average, this group has gained an average of 3.6% so far this year, meaning that DAL is performing better in terms of year-to-date returns. Allegiant Travel is also part of the same industry.
Going forward, investors interested in Transportation stocks should continue to pay close attention to Delta Air Lines and Allegiant Travel as they could maintain their solid performance.
Taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals for new and old investors, and Zacks Premium offers many different ways to do both.
The research service features daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, all of which will help you become a smarter, more confident investor.
Zacks Premium includes access to the Zacks Style Scores as well.
What are the Zacks Style Scores? The Zacks Style Scores is a unique set of guidelines that rates stocks based on three popular investing types, and were developed as complementary indicators for the Zacks Rank. This combination helps investors choose securities with the highest chances of beating the market over the next 30 days.
Based on their value, growth, and momentum characteristics, each stock is assigned a rating of A, B, C, D, or F. The better the score, the better chance the stock will outperform; an A is better than a B, a B is better than a C, and so on.
The Style Scores are broken down into four categories:
Value ScoreValue investors love finding good stocks at good prices, especially before the broader market catches on to a stock's true value. Utilizing ratios like P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, Price/Cash Flow, and many other multiples, the Value Style Score identifies the most attractive and most discounted stocks.
Growth ScoreGrowth investors are more concerned with a stock's future prospects, and the overall financial health and strength of a company. Thus, the Growth Style Score analyzes characteristics like projected and historic earnings, sales, and cash flow to find stocks that will see sustainable growth over time.
Momentum ScoreMomentum traders and investors live by the saying "the trend is your friend." This investing style is all about taking advantage of upward or downward trends in a stock's price or earnings outlook. Employing factors like one-week price change and the monthly percentage change in earnings estimates, the Momentum Style Score can indicate favorable times to build a position in high-momentum stocks.
VGM ScoreIf you like to use all three kinds of investing, then the VGM Score is for you. It's a combination of all Style Scores, and is an important indicator to use with the Zacks Rank. The VGM Score rates each stock on their shared weighted styles, narrowing down the companies with the most attractive value, best growth forecast, and most promising momentum.
How Style Scores Work with the Zacks Rank A proprietary stock-rating model, the Zacks Rank utilizes the power of earnings estimate revisions, or changes to a company's earnings outlook, to help investors create a successful portfolio.
It's highly successful, with #1 (Strong Buy) stocks producing an unmatched +23.94% average annual return since 1988. That's more than double the S&P 500. But because of the large number of stocks we rate, there are over 200 companies with a Strong Buy rank, plus another 600 with a #2 (Buy) rank, on any given day.
With more than 800 top-rated stocks to choose from, it can certainly feel overwhelming to pick the ones that are right for you and your investing journey.
That's where the Style Scores come in.
To have the best chance of big returns, you'll want to always consider stocks with a Zacks Rank #1 or #2 that also have Style Scores of A or B, which will give you the highest probability of success. If you're looking at stocks with a #3 (Hold) rank, it's important they have Scores of A or B as well to ensure as much upside potential as possible.
The direction of a stock's earnings estimate revisions should always be a key factor when choosing which stocks to buy, since the Scores were created to work together with the Zacks Rank.
Here's an example: a stock with a #4 (Sell) or #5 (Strong Sell) rating, even one with Style Scores of A and B, still has a downward-trending earnings outlook, and a bigger chance its share price will decrease too.
Thus, the more stocks you own with a #1 or #2 Rank and Scores of A or B, the better.
Stock to Watch: Delta Air Lines (DAL - Free Report) Delta Air Lines, Inc. is one of the four carriers that together account for roughly 60% of the U.S. aviation market, following industry consolidation in the early part of this century.
DAL is a #2 (Buy) on the Zacks Rank, with a VGM Score of A.
It also boasts a Value Style Score of A thanks to attractive valuation metrics like a forward P/E ratio of 14.57; value investors should take notice.
Seven analysts revised their earnings estimate higher in the last 60 days for fiscal 2026, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate has increased $0.66 to $5.92 per share. DAL also boasts an average earnings surprise of +5.5%.
With a solid Zacks Rank and top-tier Value and VGM Style Scores, DAL should be on investors' short list.
