UAL vs. DAL

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (UAL) and Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL).

Performance

UAL vs. DAL - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (UAL) and Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

UAL vs. DAL - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
UAL United Airlines Holdings, Inc.	-17.66%	15.16%	135.34%	9.44%	-13.89%	1.23%	-50.90%	5.21%	24.23%	-7.52%
DAL Delta Air Lines, Inc.	-3.95%	16.09%	52.00%	23.03%	-15.92%	-2.81%	-30.77%	20.38%	-8.66%	16.23%

Fundamentals

Market Cap UAL : $30.11B DAL : $43.61B
EPS UAL : $10.25 DAL : $7.66
PE Ratio UAL : 8.98 DAL : 8.68
PEG Ratio UAL : 0.18 DAL : 0.05
PS Ratio UAL : 0.51 DAL : 0.69
PB Ratio UAL : 1.97 DAL : 2.10
Total Revenue (TTM) UAL : $59.07B DAL : $63.36B
Gross Profit (TTM) UAL : $37.88B DAL : $15.54B
EBITDA (TTM) UAL : $7.54B DAL : $9.63B

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, UAL achieves a -17.66% return, which is significantly lower than DAL's -3.95% return. Both investments have delivered pretty close results over the past 10 years, with UAL having a 4.96% annualized return and DAL not far behind at 4.80%.

UAL

• 1D: 8.05%
• 1M: -13.39%
• YTD: -17.66%
• 6M: -4.59%
• 1Y: 33.34%
• 3Y*: 27.66%
• 5Y*: 9.75%
• 10Y*: 4.96%

DAL

• 1D: 5.21%
• 1M: 1.19%
• YTD: -3.95%
• 6M: 17.82%
• 1Y: 54.35%
• 3Y*: 25.19%
• 5Y*: 7.01%
• 10Y*: 4.80%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

Return for Risk

UAL vs. DAL — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

UAL

UAL Risk / Return Rank: 65
UAL Sharpe Ratio Rank: 63
UAL Sortino Ratio Rank: 63
UAL Omega Ratio Rank: 61
UAL Calmar Ratio Rank: 66
UAL Martin Ratio Rank: 70

DAL

DAL Risk / Return Rank: 79
DAL Sharpe Ratio Rank: 77
DAL Sortino Ratio Rank: 77
DAL Omega Ratio Rank: 73
DAL Calmar Ratio Rank: 81
DAL Martin Ratio Rank: 84

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

UAL vs. DAL - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (UAL) and Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	UAL	DAL	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	0.58	1.09	-0.51
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	1.25	1.90	-0.65
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.16	1.23	-0.07
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	1.13	2.34	-1.21
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	3.29	7.10	-3.81
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

UAL vs. DAL - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current UAL Sharpe Ratio is 0.58, which is lower than the DAL Sharpe Ratio of 1.09. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of UAL and DAL, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	UAL	DAL	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	0.58	1.09	-0.51
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.20	0.17	+0.03
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	0.10	0.11	-0.02
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.09	0.14	-0.06

Correlation

The correlation between UAL and DAL is 0.81, which is considered to be high. That indicates a strong positive relationship between their price movements. Having highly-correlated positions in a portfolio may signal a lack of diversification, potentially leading to increased risk during market downturns.

Dividends

UAL vs. DAL - Dividend Comparison

UAL has not paid dividends to shareholders, while DAL's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 1.07%.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015
UAL United Airlines Holdings, Inc.	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
DAL Delta Air Lines, Inc.	1.07%	0.97%	0.83%	0.50%	0.00%	0.00%	1.00%	2.57%	2.63%	1.81%	1.37%	0.89%

Drawdowns

UAL vs. DAL - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum UAL drawdown since its inception was -93.50%, which is greater than DAL's maximum drawdown of -81.73%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for UAL and DAL.

Drawdown Indicators

	UAL	DAL	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-93.50%	-81.73%	-11.77%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-27.50%	-22.90%	-4.60%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-49.19%	-47.92%	-1.27%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-79.40%	-69.18%	-10.22%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-21.66%	-11.53%	-10.13%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-37.44%	-29.16%	-8.28%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	9.46%	7.53%	+1.93%

Volatility

UAL vs. DAL - Volatility Comparison

United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (UAL) has a higher volatility of 16.13% compared to Delta Air Lines, Inc. (DAL) at 13.56%. This indicates that UAL's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than DAL based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	UAL	DAL	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	16.13%	13.56%	+2.57%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	34.59%	29.63%	+4.96%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	57.42%	50.04%	+7.38%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	48.00%	40.49%	+7.51%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	51.49%	41.96%	+9.53%

Financials

UAL vs. DAL - Profitability Comparison

The chart below illustrates the profitability comparison between United Airlines Holdings, Inc. and Delta Air Lines, Inc. over time, highlighting three key metrics: Gross Profit Margin, Operating Margin, and Net Profit Margin.

UAL - Gross Margin

Gross margin is calculated as gross profit divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, United Airlines Holdings, Inc. reported a gross profit of 9.88B and revenue of 15.40B. Therefore, the gross margin over that period was 64.1%.

DAL - Gross Margin

Gross margin is calculated as gross profit divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, Delta Air Lines, Inc. reported a gross profit of 3.58B and revenue of 16.00B. Therefore, the gross margin over that period was 22.4%.

UAL - Operating Margin

Operating margin is calculated as operating income divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, United Airlines Holdings, Inc. reported an operating income of 1.39B and revenue of 15.40B, resulting in an operating margin of 9.0%.

DAL - Operating Margin

Operating margin is calculated as operating income divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, Delta Air Lines, Inc. reported an operating income of 1.47B and revenue of 16.00B, resulting in an operating margin of 9.2%.

UAL - Net Margin

Net margin is calculated as net income divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, United Airlines Holdings, Inc. reported a net income of 1.04B and revenue of 15.40B, resulting in a net margin of 6.8%.

DAL - Net Margin

Net margin is calculated as net income divided by revenue. For the three months ending on Apr 2026, Delta Air Lines, Inc. reported a net income of 1.22B and revenue of 16.00B, resulting in a net margin of 7.6%.