Fred Alger Management LLC Acquires Shares of 854,478 Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Fred Alger Management LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 854,478 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $51,696,000. Fred Alger Management LLC owned 0.13% of Delta Air Lines at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of DAL. WASHINGTON TRUST Co increased its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 2,150 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 48.1% in the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 474 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,555 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $554,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the period. Mason & Associates Inc increased its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Mason & Associates Inc now owns 5,088 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $308,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 14,298 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $865,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.93% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Rahul D. Samant sold 38,023 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.89, for a total transaction of $2,467,312.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 52,789 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,425,478.21. This represents a 41.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.88% of the company's stock.

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 5.9%

DAL stock traded up $2.87 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $51.21. 18,915,976 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,555,212. The company has a market cap of $33.43 billion, a PE ratio of 9.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.46. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $44.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $56.40. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a one year low of $34.74 and a one year high of $69.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.37.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 9th. The transportation company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.38). The firm had revenue of $12.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.85 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 30.41%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 13th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 13th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on DAL shares. Dbs Bank cut Delta Air Lines from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Delta Air Lines from $83.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Susquehanna reduced their price target on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $50.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $46.00 price target (down from $85.00) on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $58.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $61.37.

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.