Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL Shares Bought by O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• O Shaughnessy Asset Management increased its Delta Air Lines stake by 25.7% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 141,795 shares valued at about $9.84 million.
• Delta reported solid quarterly results, with EPS of $0.64 beating estimates and revenue of $14.20 billion topping expectations; revenue also rose 9.4% year over year.
• Despite recent insider selling, analysts remain largely positive on DAL, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $80.85.

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) by 25.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 141,795 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 29,019 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC's holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $9,841,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Financial Bank Trust Division raised its position in Delta Air Lines by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 4,721 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $328,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its position in Delta Air Lines by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 6,022 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $454,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in Delta Air Lines by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 6,472 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $449,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC raised its position in Delta Air Lines by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 4,644 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $322,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the period. Finally, JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Delta Air Lines by 25.4% during the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 794 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Delta Air Lines

In other Delta Air Lines news, EVP Allison C. Ausband sold 9,710 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total value of $737,960.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 138,854 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,552,904. This represents a 6.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John E. Laughter sold 69,304 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.15, for a total transaction of $4,723,067.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 69,369 shares in the company, valued at $4,727,497.35. The trade was a 49.98% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 149,635 shares of company stock valued at $10,833,855 over the last 90 days. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Delta Air Lines Trading Down 5.6%

Shares of DAL opened at $76.62 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 12-month low of $45.28 and a 12-month high of $83.83. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $72.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were given a $0.1875 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio is presently 10.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DAL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Argus upped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.85.

Delta Air Lines Company Profile

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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