Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Invests $41.23 Million in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 945,628 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $41,229,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned 0.14% of Delta Air Lines at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Delta Air Lines by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,174 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $555,000 after buying an additional 2,302 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Delta Air Lines by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,639 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $583,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Delta Air Lines by 110.4% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 15,808 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $956,000 after buying an additional 8,293 shares during the period. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Fi3 FINANCIAL ADVISORS LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $228,000. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

DAL stock traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $56.31. The stock had a trading volume of 8,975,576 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,912,508. The stock has a market cap of $36.77 billion, a PE ratio of 8.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.38. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $52.51. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52-week low of $34.74 and a 52-week high of $69.98.

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 $15,507,000 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. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $0.1875 per share. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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 8.70%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Peter W. Carter sold 17,550 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.19, for a total transaction of $1,003,684.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 191,442 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,948,567.98. The trade was a 8.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 45,423 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.56, for a total value of $2,523,701.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 131,731 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,318,974.36. The trade was a 25.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 98,973 shares of company stock valued at $5,541,946. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DAL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Delta Air Lines from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. UBS Group set a $72.00 price target on Delta Air Lines in a report on Friday, July 11th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna Bancshares upped their price target on Delta Air Lines from $51.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $66.21.

Delta Air Lines 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.