Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $72.34 and last traded at $71.2660, with a volume of 10438393 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $71.27.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Dbs Bank raised Delta Air Lines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Friday. Wolfe Research decreased their target price on Delta Air Lines from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Delta Air Lines from $74.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Delta Air Lines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $74.64.

Delta Air Lines Stock Up 0.6%

The company has a market cap of $45.79 billion, a PE ratio of 9.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.38. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.34.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 15th. The transportation company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 23.83% and a net margin of 7.36%. Research analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Thursday, November 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 16th were paid a dividend of $0.1875 per share. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 16th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP William C. Carroll sold 14,010 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.25, for a total transaction of $858,112.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $968,730. This represents a 46.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John E. Laughter sold 23,323 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.33, for a total transaction of $1,453,722.59. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 81,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,055,523.97. This trade represents a 22.33% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in Delta Air Lines by 3.3% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,493 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $312,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 3.2% in the third quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 5,871 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,844 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $386,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,237 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gables Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,225 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

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.