Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL Stake Reduced by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Key Points

• Crossmark Global Holdings reduced its Delta stake by 4.7% in the third quarter, selling 13,067 shares and retaining 263,386 shares valued at approximately $22.0 million. Institutional investors collectively own 69.93% of Delta’s stock.
• Delta’s latest quarterly results slightly missed expectations, with EPS of $1.72 versus $1.77 expected and revenue of $17.59 billion versus $17.64 billion expected. The company lowered full-year earnings guidance primarily because of fuel costs, despite reporting 21.1% year-over-year revenue growth.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, assigning the stock a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $99.65 versus a recent price near $77.71. Delta also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.215 per share, while executives sold a combined 356,726 shares during the latest quarter.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 263,386 shares of the transportation company's stock after selling 13,067 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $21,982,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,182,646,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 50.9% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,033,595 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $268,153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,360,195 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the second quarter worth about $160,265,000. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 15.0% during the first quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 1,469,652 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $97,702,000 after purchasing an additional 191,345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 28.9% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,339,423 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $89,045,000 after purchasing an additional 300,288 shares during the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Delta Air Lines News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Delta Air Lines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong airline-sector outlook: United Airlines’ forecast for record revenue helped lift the broader airline group, including Delta. The outlook suggests resilient travel demand may offset some pressure from elevated fuel expenses. United Airlines revenue forecast article
• Positive Sentiment: Fuel-cost relief supported sentiment: A pullback in crude oil prices improved the near-term margin outlook for airlines. Delta previously indicated that fuel was the primary reason it reduced full-year earnings expectations, making any further energy-market relief potentially beneficial. Why Delta Air Lines stock is up today
• Positive Sentiment: Potential fleet and valuation catalysts: Boeing’s certification of the 737 MAX 10 removes a delivery bottleneck affecting some of Delta’s aircraft orders and could support fleet modernization over time. Analysts tracked in the coverage have a median price target of $105, well above the recent share price near $78. Boeing 737 MAX 10 approval article
• Neutral Sentiment: Demand remains constructive but guidance was reset: Delta expects fourth-quarter revenue growth of roughly 20%, although its latest quarterly EPS and revenue slightly missed estimates and full-year earnings guidance was reduced because of fuel costs.
• Negative Sentiment: Fuel and insider-selling risks persist: Higher fuel prices could continue to compress margins, while the cited insider-trading data showed six open-market sales and no purchases during the past six months. These factors may limit the stock’s upside if airline cost pressures intensify. Delta insider trading data

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of DAL opened at $77.71 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $51.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.51, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.40. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $55.03 and a fifty-two week high of $95.68. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $81.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $80.57.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 9th. The transportation company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.77 by ($0.05). Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 4.58% and a return on equity of 16.83%. The business had revenue of $17.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.71 EPS. Delta Air Lines's revenue for the quarter was up 21.1% on a year-over-year basis. Delta Air Lines has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.150-1.650 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 5.100-5.600 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 15th will be given a dividend of $0.2150 per share. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 15th. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio is presently 17.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Delta Air Lines

In other news, President Peter W. Carter sold 39,900 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.98, for a total value of $3,709,902.00. Following the transaction, the president owned 424,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,488,977.92. The trade was a 8.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 206,510 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.80, for a total value of $19,164,128.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,363,448 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $126,527,974.40. This trade represents a 13.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 356,726 shares of company stock valued at $33,081,037. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on DAL. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Monday. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $105.00 to $101.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $106.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Twenty-two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $99.65.

Delta Air Lines Profile

Delta Air Lines, Inc is a major U.S. airline headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The company provides scheduled passenger air transportation to destinations across the United States and international markets, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, Canada, Africa and the Caribbean. Delta operates through a network of hubs and focus cities, offering service under the Delta brand and through regional partners operating as Delta Connection.

In addition to passenger flights, Delta provides air cargo transportation and related logistics services.

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