Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt Raises Position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Key Points

• Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt increased its stake in Delta Air Lines by 308% in the 2nd quarter, owning a total of 234,220 shares worth approximately $11.5 million.
• Delta Air Lines recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.1875 per share, up from $0.15, resulting in a yield of 1.3%.
• Analyst ratings for Delta Air Lines are generally positive, with target price upgrades from several firms, including an increase by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $72 to $85.

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) by 308.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 234,220 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 176,820 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt's holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $11,519,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DAL. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines in the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines in the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in Delta Air Lines by 44.2% in the 4th quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 584 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines in the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines in the 1st quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.93% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Delta Air Lines news, Director Michael P. Huerta sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 33,245 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,017,971.50. This trade represents a 6.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.28, for a total value of $1,969,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 632,823 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,615,278.44. This represents a 5.24% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 136,473 shares of company stock worth $7,663,496. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Delta Air Lines Trading Down 2.5%

DAL stock opened at $58.38 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 12-month low of $34.74 and a 12-month high of $69.98. The stock has a market cap of $38.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.46, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.51. The business's 50-day moving average is $57.51 and its 200 day moving average is $50.46.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 10th. The transportation company reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.09. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 24.86% and a net margin of 7.24%.The company had revenue of $15.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.36 EPS. Delta Air Lines's revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $0.1875 dividend. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This is a positive change from Delta Air Lines's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Delta Air Lines's payout ratio is presently 10.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on DAL shares. Susquehanna Bancshares raised their target price on Delta Air Lines from $51.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Delta Air Lines from $72.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Bernstein Bank raised their target price on Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Delta Air Lines from $53.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $66.93.

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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