Fidelis Capital Partners LLC Raises Stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 589.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 124,276 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 106,262 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $8,625,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DAL. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter worth $432,000. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Delta Air Lines by 24.9% in the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 15,891 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,103,000 after acquiring an additional 3,166 shares during the last quarter. Allstate Corp boosted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 89.2% during the 4th quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 9,964 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $692,000 after acquiring an additional 4,698 shares during the last quarter. Summitry LLC purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter worth about $398,000. Finally, Main Street Research LLC increased its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Main Street Research LLC now owns 4,768 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $331,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP John E. Laughter sold 69,304 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 10th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $4,727,497.35. This trade represents a 49.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Allison C. Ausband sold 9,710 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total transaction of $737,960.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 138,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,552,904. This trade represents a 6.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 119,635 shares of company stock worth $8,402,855. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen and UBS both raised their price targets on Delta, reinforcing confidence that the airline’s earnings outlook and valuation can improve. Delta (DAL) Stock Is Up, What You Need To Know
• Positive Sentiment: UBS lifted its target to $98 and kept a buy rating, citing a more constructive sector outlook; other recent analyst notes also leaned positive for airline profits and stock performance. Why Some Experts Say Airline Profits—and Stocks—Are About To Take Off
• Positive Sentiment: Falling oil prices are easing jet-fuel cost pressure across the airline group, which is helping airline stocks rally broadly. Airline stocks rally as oil retreat eases fuel cost pressure
• Neutral Sentiment: Delta’s executive vice president Allison Ausband disclosed recent stock sales. Insider selling can create some caution, but the transactions were relatively modest compared with Delta’s market value. Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) EVP Allison Ausband Sells 5,000 Shares
• Neutral Sentiment: Delta is also working to improve operations after a rise in flight cancellations, which could matter for summer travel demand, but this is more of an execution issue than an immediate catalyst. Delta’s Flight Cancellations Have Mounted, and It’s Staffing Up to Improve

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on DAL shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $76.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Wolfe Research cut their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $73.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised their price target on Delta Air Lines from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. One investment 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 MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.89.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

NYSE:DAL opened at $81.66 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.72. The stock has a market cap of $53.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.25. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a twelve month low of $45.28 and a twelve month high of $83.76.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 6.87% and a return on equity of 20.28%. The business had revenue of $14.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.26 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.1875 per share. This represents a $0.75 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 14th. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is presently 10.93%.

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.