Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Lowers Position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Key Points

• Commonwealth Equity Services LLC has reduced its stake in Delta Air Lines by 1.4%, owning approximately $20.61 million worth of shares.
• Delta Air Lines recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.1875, reflecting a positive shift in its payout from the previous $0.15 dividend.
• Analysts have raised their target prices for Delta Air Lines, with estimates ranging from $60.00 to $72.00, indicating a generally positive outlook on the stock.

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC cut its position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) by 1.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 472,729 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 6,570 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Delta Air Lines worth $20,611,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 5.9% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 161,395 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $7,037,000 after buying an additional 9,034 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 152.3% in the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 12,567 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $548,000 after buying an additional 7,586 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 8.2% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 39,374 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,670,000 after buying an additional 2,973 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 21.2% in the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 145,240 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $6,332,000 after buying an additional 25,406 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 3.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,585 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $418,000 after buying an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Delta Air Lines news, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 45,423 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.56, for a total value of $2,523,701.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 131,731 shares in the company, valued at $7,318,974.36. This represents a 25.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 18,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.96, for a total transaction of $1,007,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 97,505 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,456,379.80. The trade was a 15.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 133,973 shares of company stock valued at $7,511,746. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

NYSE DAL traded down $0.51 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $53.61. 4,973,894 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,952,094. The business's fifty day moving average price is $51.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.56. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52 week low of $34.74 and a 52 week high of $69.98.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $15,507,000 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 was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.36 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a $0.1875 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This is an increase from Delta Air Lines's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna Bancshares lifted their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $51.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $62.00 to $65.50 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.21.

Delta Air Lines Company Profile

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.