Delta (DAL) stock is up 47% year to date… can its performance with consumers continue to justify sky-high expectations?

With earnings on the horizon Thursday, I wanted to share with you three important pieces of LikeFolio data that suggest Delta could actually climb higher over the next 90 days:

Consumers are absorbing high prices

The overall cost of travel has risen by 16% vs pre-pandemic levels.

Initially, consumers winced and complained about these price hikes, but as you can see in the LikeFolio data below, it appears that we’ve gotten used to the pain…

Consumer Demand for Delta is Surging

Year over year purchase intent mentions for flying on Delta have moved to all-time highs, recording a 39% year-over-year improvement:

With TSA passenger volumes up by 10-20% on a daily basis across the board, it’s good to see Delta is likely getting an outsized slice of the growth.

Delta customers are just plain happier

Pricing power matters a lot in the airline game. And so does customer loyalty.

LikeFolio data shows that Delta’s customers are significantly happier than those flying with its major competitors – a big shift from the days of Southwest (LUV) dominating on consumer sentiment:

Bottom line – we expect Delta to post great numbers for Q2 and have an optimistic (but potentially cautious) outlook for the remainder of the year.