Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL Shares Sold by LSV Asset Management

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management reduced its Delta Air Lines stake by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 116,200 shares and leaving it with 3.33 million shares valued at about $231.2 million.
• Delta reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.64 versus estimates of $0.61 and revenue of $14.20 billion versus expectations of $14.05 billion, with revenue up 9.4% year over year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.1875 per share, and analysts remain broadly constructive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a price target of $79.76.

LSV Asset Management trimmed its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,331,717 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 116,200 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned 0.51% of Delta Air Lines worth $231,221,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. AlphaQuest LLC raised its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 90.6% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 444 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Accredited Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1,983.3% during the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares during the period. SWAN Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1,016.0% during the third quarter. SWAN Capital LLC now owns 558 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. Camelot Portfolios LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 451.6% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 524 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares during the period. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DAL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Seaport Research Partners increased their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. HSBC dropped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.20 to $79.30 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $79.76.

Delta Air Lines Stock Up 0.7%

DAL stock opened at $76.16 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $45.28 and a fifty-two week high of $77.10. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $68.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.20. The stock has a market cap of $50.04 billion, a PE ratio of 11.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.25.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $14.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.05 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 6.87% and a return on equity of 20.28%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.46 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.26 EPS 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.1875 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Delta Air Lines

In other Delta Air Lines news, EVP John E. Laughter sold 69,304 shares of the firm'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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 69,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,727,497.35. This trade represents a 49.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 20,621 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.75, for a total transaction of $1,500,177.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 120,025 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,731,818.75. The trade was a 14.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 204,925 shares of company stock valued at $14,323,395. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Delta Air Lines 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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