Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Shares Down 4.4% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Delta Air Lines' stock declined by 4.4% recently, with prices dropping to as low as $58.36 during trading, marking a significant downturn from the previous closing price of $61.39.
• Equities research analysts have raised their price targets for Delta Air Lines, with estimates ranging from $58.00 to $72.00, and the consensus rating for the stock remains a "Buy" with an average price target of $66.21.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.1875 per share, which is an increase from its previous dividend of $0.15, indicating a positive change in its dividend policy.

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) traded down 4.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $58.36 and last traded at $58.69. 7,674,378 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 26% from the average session volume of 10,338,490 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.39.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on DAL shares. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $62.00 to $65.50 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Delta Air Lines from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Delta Air Lines from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $66.21.

Delta Air Lines Stock Down 1.0%

The company has a market cap of $39.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.80, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.38. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $56.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $50.63.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 10th. The transportation company reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $15.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.16 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.24% and a return on equity of 24.86%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.36 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were given a dividend of $0.1875 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a positive change from Delta Air Lines's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.87%.

Insider Transactions at Delta Air Lines

In other news, Director Michael P. Huerta sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.70, for a total transaction of $151,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 33,245 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,017,971.50. This trade represents a 6.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 45,423 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction on Friday, July 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.56, for a total transaction of $2,523,701.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 131,731 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,318,974.36. This represents a 25.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 136,473 shares of company stock valued at $7,663,496. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Delta Air Lines

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Delta Air Lines in the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 184.6% during the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 572 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 44.2% in the fourth quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 584 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management raised its stake in Delta Air Lines by 2,280.8% during the 2nd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 619 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 593 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 69.93% of the company's stock.

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.

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