Here’s Why Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) Led This Week’s Rally

We recently published an article titled These 10 Firms Led This Week’s Rally. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) stands against the other stocks.

Ten companies finished stronger this week, outpacing the broader market thanks to a series of catalysts that lifted investor sentiment.

On Friday, the Dow Jones recorded its largest weekly drop, falling 1.07%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq declined by 0.71% and 0.62%, respectively.

Despite a lackluster performance from Wall Street’s major indices, 10 companies demonstrated notable resilience. In this article, we will look at their past week’s performance and the reasons that fueled their rally.

To come up with this week’s top gainers, we considered only the stocks with at least $2 billion in market capitalization and $5 million in daily trading volume.

An aerial view of a commercial aircraft taking off from a coastal hub.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) jumped by 13.36 percent week-on-week, ending at $66.95 versus the $59.06 price the week prior.

Investor sentiment was bolstered by better-than-expected earnings in the fourth quarter of 2024 on the back of strong travel demand.

From months October to December, Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) said net income came in at $843 million while operating revenues were at $15.6 billion. Earnings per share of $1.85 also beat analyst estimates of $1.75.

For this year, Delta Air Chief Executive Officer Ed Bastian said he was confident that the company’s strong performance would carry over to 2025, “with consumers increasingly seeking the premium products and experiences that Delta provides.”

For this year, Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) said it expects to generate over $4 billion in free cash, or an 18 percent growth from 2024, in the midpoint of its annual target of between $3 billion and $5 billion. Meanwhile, annual adjusted earnings are targeted to settle at $7.35 per share.

Overall DAL ranks 9th on our list of the firms that led this week’s rally. While we acknowledge the potential of DAL as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than DAL but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 8 Best Wide Moat Stocks to Buy Now and 30 Most Important AI Stocks According to BlackRock

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.