DAL vs. RYAAY: Delta Air Lines vs. Ryanair Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY) are both classified in the Passenger Airlines sub-industry within the broader Passenger Airlines industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Delta Air Lines (DAL) trades as ordinary local shares, while Ryanair (RYAAY) trades as an ADR — compare with FX exposure, depositary-program fees, and dividend-withholding-tax differences in mind.

Company profile comparison for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY)
Profile Item	DAL	RYAAY
Name	Delta Air Lines, Inc.	Ryanair Holdings plc Sponsored ADR
Country/Region	United States	Ireland
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Transportation	Transportation
GICS Industry	Passenger Airlines	Passenger Airlines
GICS Sub-Industry	Passenger Airlines	Passenger Airlines
Market Capitalization	57.37 billion USD	30.71 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	Nasdaq
Listing Date	May 3, 2007	May 29, 1997
Security Type	Common Stock	ADR

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

DAL

RYAAY

GSPC

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY)
Metric	DAL	RYAAY
Total Return (1Y)	56.32%	-2.55%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	41.15%	14.57%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	16.27%	5.74%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

DAL

RYAAY

GSPC

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY)
Metric	DAL	RYAAY
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	39.27%	37.69%
Beta (5Y)	1.37	1.14
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-47.92%	-54.17%
Avg. Volume (3M)	6.42M	1.62M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

DAL and RYAAY are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY)
Metric	DAL	RYAAY
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.33	-0.18
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	2.19	-0.27

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 15.91% and Ryanair (RYAAY) at 17.32% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

DAL

Transportation industry group

15.91%

Max: 45.08%
Q3: 22.02%
DAL: 15.91%
Median: 13.94%
Q1: 2.89%
Min: -10.45%

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

17.32%

Max: 45.08%
Q3: 22.02%
RYAAY: 17.32%
Median: 13.94%
Q1: 2.89%
Min: -10.45%

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their ROE against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 4.58% and Ryanair (RYAAY) at 11.28% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

DAL

Transportation industry group

4.58%

Max: 50.36%
Q3: 21.18%
Median: 5.58%
DAL: 4.58%
Q1: 1.55%
Min: -11.37%

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

11.28%

Max: 50.36%
Q3: 21.18%
RYAAY: 11.28%
Median: 5.58%
Q1: 1.55%
Min: -11.37%

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their net margin against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Ryanair (RYAAY) at 31.94% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 7.22%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

DAL

Transportation industry group

7.22%

Max: 59.18%
Q3: 29.30%
Median: 11.50%
DAL: 7.22%
Q1: 4.62%
Min: -8.91%

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

31.94%

Max: 59.18%
RYAAY: 31.94%
Q3: 29.30%
Median: 11.50%
Q1: 4.62%
Min: -8.91%

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their operating margin against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY)
Metric	DAL	RYAAY
ROE (TTM)	15.91%	17.32%
ROA (TTM)	3.95%	6.82%
Net Margin (TTM)	4.58%	11.28%
Operating Margin (TTM)	7.22%	31.94%
Gross Margin (TTM)	17.90%	27.18%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Ryanair (RYAAY) at 11.44% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 2.79% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for RYAAY.

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 43.71% and Ryanair (RYAAY) at 40.37% sit in the top peer quartile for EPS growth, so each is compounding per-share earnings faster than typical industry peers.

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY)
Metric	DAL	RYAAY
Revenue Growth (YoY)	2.79%	11.44%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	7.80%	12.99%
EPS Growth (YoY)	43.71%	40.37%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	54.92%	21.00%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Ryanair (RYAAY) at 1.17 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 0.40 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for DAL.

DAL

Transportation industry group

0.40

Max: 2.58
Q3: 1.62
Median: 1.16
Q1: 0.78
DAL: 0.40
Min: 0.22

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

1.17

Max: 2.58
Q3: 1.62
RYAAY: 1.17
Median: 1.16
Q1: 0.78
Min: 0.22

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their current ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Ryanair (RYAAY) at 0.05 keeps leverage in the lower industry quartile, while Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 0.89 runs a more typical debt-to-equity mix.

DAL

Transportation industry group

0.89

Max: 2.75
Q3: 1.37
DAL: 0.89
Median: 0.78
Q1: 0.35
Min: 0.00

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

0.05

Max: 2.75
Q3: 1.37
Median: 0.78
Q1: 0.35
RYAAY: 0.05
Min: 0.00

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY)
Metric	DAL	RYAAY
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.40	1.17
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.89	0.05
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.15	-0.59

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 0.94% and Ryanair (RYAAY) at 0.80% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

DAL

Transportation industry group

0.94%

Max: 4.68%
Q3: 1.99%
DAL: 0.94%
Median: 0.74%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

0.80%

Max: 4.68%
Q3: 1.99%
RYAAY: 0.80%
Median: 0.74%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 15.52% and Ryanair (RYAAY) at 22.67% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

DAL

Transportation industry group

15.52%

Max: 100.89%
Q3: 41.68%
Median: 20.43%
DAL: 15.52%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

22.67%

Max: 100.89%
Q3: 41.68%
RYAAY: 22.67%
Median: 20.43%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY)
Metric	DAL	RYAAY
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.94%	0.80%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	15.52%	22.67%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 17.41 and Ryanair (RYAAY) at 14.90 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

DAL

Transportation industry group

17.41

Max: 46.76
Q3: 30.87
Median: 20.58
DAL: 17.41
Q1: 10.44
Min: 0.00

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

14.90

Max: 46.76
Q3: 30.87
Median: 20.58
RYAAY: 14.90
Q1: 10.44
Min: 0.00

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 0.80 and Ryanair (RYAAY) at 1.94 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

DAL

Transportation industry group

0.80

Max: 4.35
Q3: 2.07
Median: 0.93
DAL: 0.80
Q1: 0.53
Min: 0.04

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

1.94

Max: 4.35
Q3: 2.07
RYAAY: 1.94
Median: 0.93
Q1: 0.53
Min: 0.04

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both Delta Air Lines (DAL) at 2.53 and Ryanair (RYAAY) at 2.35 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

DAL

Transportation industry group

2.53

Max: 6.29
Q3: 3.39
DAL: 2.53
Median: 1.90
Q1: 1.03
Min: -2.07

RYAAY

Transportation industry group

2.35

Max: 6.29
Q3: 3.39
RYAAY: 2.35
Median: 1.90
Q1: 1.03
Min: -2.07

Delta Air Lines (DAL) vs. Ryanair (RYAAY): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Transportation industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Ryanair (RYAAY)
Metric	DAL	RYAAY
P/E Ratio (TTM)	17.41	14.90
P/S Ratio (TTM)	0.80	1.94
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.53	2.35
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	4.34%	-3.25%