DAL's Largest Transatlantic Schedule in 2026: Growth Story Hotting up?

Core Insights - Delta Air Lines (DAL) is preparing for its largest transatlantic season ever in summer 2026, anticipating a surge in international air travel demand [2][3] - The airline plans to operate over 650 weekly flights to nearly 30 European destinations, including the introduction of seven new non-stop routes [3][4] - Enhanced customer features, including a partnership with YouTube for ad-free access to content, are expected to improve the flying experience and boost passenger revenues [5] Flight Schedule and Routes - Delta will introduce seven new non-stop routes connecting major cities such as Boston to Madrid, Seattle to Rome, and New York to Porto, among others [4][11] - The winter schedule is also expected to attract significant traffic with services to popular destinations like Amsterdam, Paris, and London-Heathrow [6] Competitive Landscape - United Airlines (UAL) plans to operate services to over 45 cities across the Atlantic, with nearly 3,000 weekly international round-trips in summer 2026 [7] - American Airlines (AAL) is expanding its European routes and will be the only nonstop service from the U.S. to Budapest, Hungary, while also adding routes to Athens and Milan [8] Financial Performance - Delta's shares have increased by over 26% in the past six months, outperforming the Zacks Transportation - Airline industry [9] - The company trades at a 12-month forward price-to-sales ratio of 0.61X, which is higher than industry levels [13] Earnings Estimates - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for DAL's earnings has been revised upward for the fourth quarter of 2025 and full-year 2025 and 2026 [15] - Current earnings estimates for Q1 2026 stand at $1.75, with a positive revision trend observed over the past 60 days [15]