AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Decreases Stock Holdings in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lessened its position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 30.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 207,083 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 92,310 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $10,518,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DAL. Senator Investment Group LP increased its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 90.0% during the 2nd quarter. Senator Investment Group LP now owns 475,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $22,534,000 after purchasing an additional 225,000 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 50,358 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,384,000 after acquiring an additional 1,362 shares in the last quarter. Norden Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 714.1% in the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 112,048 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $5,364,000 after purchasing an additional 98,285 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC purchased a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the first quarter worth $907,000. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines in the 1st quarter worth about $1,309,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Delta Air Lines

In other Delta Air Lines news, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 3,431 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total value of $173,128.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 108,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,499,635.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 68,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.33, for a total value of $3,830,440.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 439,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,775,004.27. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 3,431 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total transaction of $173,128.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 108,990 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,499,635.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 90,921 shares of company stock valued at $5,080,586 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DAL traded down $0.78 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $57.68. 2,556,091 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,428,103. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $48.34 and a 200 day moving average of $47.64. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 1 year low of $30.76 and a 1 year high of $59.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.35.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 10th. The transportation company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.02). Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.46% and a return on equity of 36.02%. The company had revenue of $15.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.65 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is currently 8.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DAL has been the topic of several research reports. BNP Paribas raised shares of Delta Air Lines to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $50.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on Delta Air Lines from $61.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $65.40.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines, Inc provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Airline and Refinery. Its domestic network centered on core hubs in Atlanta, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Detroit, and Salt Lake City, as well as coastal hub positions in Boston, Los Angeles, New York-LaGuardia, New York-JFK, and Seattle; and international network centered on hubs and market presence in Amsterdam, Bogota, Lima, Mexico City, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Sao Paulo, Seoul-Incheon, and Tokyo.