Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Grows Position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) by 6.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 403,207 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 25,304 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.06% of Delta Air Lines worth $17,580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Delta Air Lines by 414.4% in the fourth quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 535 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its stake in Delta Air Lines by 44.2% in the fourth quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 584 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of Delta Air Lines stock opened at $50.93 on Friday. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52-week low of $34.74 and a 52-week high of $69.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $48.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.08. The firm has a market cap of $33.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.49.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 9th. The transportation company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.38). Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 28.18% and a net margin of 5.91%. The company had revenue of $12.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $0.1875 per share. This is a positive change from Delta Air Lines's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio is presently 10.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DAL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. UBS Group set a $66.00 price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Dbs Bank lowered shares of Delta Air Lines from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $83.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Delta Air Lines has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $61.67.

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.

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