Newport Trust Company LLC Cuts Position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Newport Trust Company LLC cut its stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 10.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,216,343 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,000,000 shares during the quarter. Delta Air Lines comprises about 1.4% of Newport Trust Company LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Newport Trust Company LLC’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $570,214,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. AlphaQuest LLC grew its stake in Delta Air Lines by 90.6% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 444 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Delta Air Lines by 1,983.3% during the 3rd quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 476 shares during the last quarter. SWAN Capital LLC grew its stake in Delta Air Lines by 1,016.0% during the 3rd quarter. SWAN Capital LLC now owns 558 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. Camelot Portfolios LLC purchased a new position in Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in Delta Air Lines by 451.6% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 524 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 429 shares during the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In related news, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 100,000 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.26, for a total value of $7,026,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,363,448 shares in the company, valued at $95,795,856.48. The trade was a 6.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John E. Laughter sold 69,304 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.15, for a total value of $4,723,067.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 69,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,727,497.35. This represents a 49.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 204,925 shares of company stock worth $14,323,395 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Delta Air Lines

Here are the key news stories impacting Delta Air Lines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage highlighted Delta as outperforming the broader market, with trading strength tied to continued investor optimism after Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a new multi-billion-dollar stake in the airline. Delta Air Lines shares jump after Berkshire Hathaway reveals a new multi-billion-dollar stake
• Positive Sentiment: Falling oil prices have also supported airline stocks, since lower jet fuel costs can improve margins for carriers like Delta Air Lines. Airline Stocks Rise As Oil Prices Drop: Here’s What You Should Know
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary has remained constructive, with multiple firms maintaining buy or overweight ratings and several recent price targets above current levels, reinforcing the bullish view on DAL. Analysts Offer Insights on Industrial Goods Companies: RXO, Inc. (RXO) and Delta Air Lines (DAL)

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

Shares of Delta Air Lines stock opened at $75.67 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a twelve month low of $45.28 and a twelve month high of $76.39. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $67.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.14. The firm has a market cap of $49.72 billion, a PE ratio of 11.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.25.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 20.28% and a net margin of 6.87%.The firm had revenue of $14.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. Delta Air Lines’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th will be paid a $0.1875 dividend. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is currently 10.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DAL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Raymond James Financial boosted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Delta Air Lines from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Delta Air Lines from $87.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners lifted their price target on Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Delta Air Lines presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.76.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines is a major U.S.-based global airline that provides scheduled passenger and cargo air transportation, aircraft maintenance and repair services, and related travel products. Its operations include mainline domestic and international passenger services, a branded regional network operating under the Delta Connection name, dedicated air cargo carriage, and in-house maintenance, repair and overhaul through Delta TechOps. Delta offers a range of cabin products for different customer segments, including premium business-class service on long-haul routes and tiered economy offerings on domestic and international flights, and it markets customer loyalty benefits through the SkyMiles frequent-flyer program.

The carrier operates a mixed fleet of narrow- and wide-body aircraft from multiple U.S.