Credit Agricole S A Reduces Stock Position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Key Points

• Credit Agricole S A has reduced its stake in Delta Air Lines by 33.2%, selling 99,760 shares and now holding 201,102 shares valued at approximately $8.76 million.
• Wall Street analysts are optimistic about Delta Air Lines, with several firms raising their price targets, resulting in a consensus rating of "Buy" and a target price of $66.21.
• Delta Air Lines has increased its quarterly dividend to $0.1875, showing confidence in its financial position despite reporting a slight revenue decline compared to the previous year.

Credit Agricole S A cut its stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) by 33.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 201,102 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 99,760 shares during the period. Credit Agricole S A's holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $8,768,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 414.4% in the fourth quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 535 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position 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 valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 69.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on DAL shares. Bernstein Bank increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $62.00 to $65.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, UBS Group set a $72.00 price target on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Delta Air Lines news, Director Michael P. Huerta sold 2,500 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.70, for a total value of $151,750.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 33,245 shares in the company, valued at $2,017,971.50. This trade represents a 6.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 18,000 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $5,456,379.80. This trade represents a 15.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 136,473 shares of company stock worth $7,663,496 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Delta Air Lines Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of NYSE DAL opened at $57.8140 on Friday. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 1 year low of $34.74 and a 1 year high of $69.98. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $53.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.05. The firm has a market cap of $37.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.38.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.09. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.24% and a return on equity of 24.86%. The firm had revenue of $15,507,000 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.36 earnings per share. Delta Air Lines's revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $0.1875 dividend. This is a boost from Delta Air Lines's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.87%.

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.

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