BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. Invests $8.54 Million in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Key Points

• BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. opened a new position in Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter, buying 123,000 shares valued at about $8.54 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with a number of other funds also adding to or starting positions in DAL; overall, 69.93% of the stock is held by institutional investors and hedge funds.
• Wall Street sentiment is still mostly positive: analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus on Delta, with an average price target of $80.85, even as several firms recently trimmed their targets.

BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 123,000 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $8,536,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board raised its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 30,000 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $2,082,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Rothschild Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter valued at $208,000. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC raised its position in Delta Air Lines by 19.2% during the fourth quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC now owns 13,787 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $957,000 after buying an additional 2,220 shares during the period. Waterloo Capital L.P. raised its position in Delta Air Lines by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. now owns 6,096 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $423,000 after buying an additional 383 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Delta Air Lines by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 72,385 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $5,024,000 after buying an additional 1,362 shares during the period. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America dropped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. HSBC dropped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $80.20 to $79.30 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. UBS Group upped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Delta Air Lines news, EVP John E. Laughter sold 69,304 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction on Friday, April 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.15, for a total value of $4,723,067.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 69,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,727,497.35. The trade was a 49.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 25,000 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.44, for a total value of $2,036,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 95,025 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,738,836. The trade was a 20.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 149,635 shares of company stock worth $10,833,855 in the last 90 days. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Delta Air Lines Stock Down 1.2%

DAL opened at $81.45 on Tuesday. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 1-year low of $45.28 and a 1-year high of $83.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50 day moving average of $70.48 and a 200-day moving average of $68.22.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 20.28% and a net margin of 6.87%.The company had revenue of $14.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 earnings per share. Delta Air Lines's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.1875 per share. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.93%.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines is a major U.S.-based global airline that provides scheduled passenger and cargo air transportation, aircraft maintenance and repair services, and related travel products. Its operations include mainline domestic and international passenger services, a branded regional network operating under the Delta Connection name, dedicated air cargo carriage, and in-house maintenance, repair and overhaul through Delta TechOps. Delta offers a range of cabin products for different customer segments, including premium business-class service on long-haul routes and tiered economy offerings on domestic and international flights, and it markets customer loyalty benefits through the SkyMiles frequent-flyer program.

The carrier operates a mixed fleet of narrow- and wide-body aircraft from multiple U.S.

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