Intech Investment Management LLC Reduces Stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Intech Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 20.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 80,771 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 20,211 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $4,887,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DAL. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $517,000. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Delta Air Lines by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 169,056 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $8,587,000 after purchasing an additional 19,350 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank grew its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 478,900 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $24,323,000 after purchasing an additional 3,400 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 3rd quarter valued at $453,000. Finally, Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its position in Delta Air Lines by 8.4% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 56,926 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,891,000 after buying an additional 4,413 shares in the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Delta Air Lines

In other Delta Air Lines news, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 91,710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.85, for a total transaction of $6,405,943.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 439,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,721,357.15. This represents a 17.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Rahul D. Samant sold 38,023 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.89, for a total value of $2,467,312.47. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 52,789 shares in the company, valued at $3,425,478.21. This trade represents a 41.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 162,886 shares of company stock valued at $11,116,463 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Trading Down 2.1 %

NYSE DAL opened at $45.91 on Wednesday. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.29 and a 1-year high of $69.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $61.77 and a 200-day moving average of $58.14. The firm has a market cap of $29.68 billion, a PE ratio of 8.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.34.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The transportation company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $15.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.20 billion. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 30.41% and a net margin of 5.61%. Delta Air Lines’s quarterly revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.28 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 27th. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is 11.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on DAL shares. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $78.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Susquehanna upped their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $59.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $76.29.

About Delta Air Lines

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.