Cozad Asset Management Inc. Sells 50,080 Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Cozad Asset Management Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 61.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,795 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 50,080 shares during the period. Cozad Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $1,474,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American International Group Inc. lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 181,107 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $7,286,000 after purchasing an additional 2,783 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 132.3% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 466,741 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $18,777,000 after purchasing an additional 265,852 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Inc. OK bought a new position in Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,241,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 325.5% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 77,647 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,124,000 after purchasing an additional 59,398 shares during the period. Finally, First Hawaiian Bank bought a new position in Delta Air Lines during the first quarter valued at approximately $749,000. Institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Delta Air Lines news, Director Willie Cw Chiang acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $49.50 per share, with a total value of $495,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,000. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Delta Air Lines news, Director Willie Cw Chiang acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $49.50 per share, with a total value of $495,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,000. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 4,846 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.30, for a total transaction of $253,445.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 112,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,879,618.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 178,919 shares of company stock valued at $8,834,653 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

NYSE DAL traded down $0.25 on Wednesday, reaching $45.78. The company had a trading volume of 7,156,948 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,752,096. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.54 billion, a PE ratio of 6.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.35. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $49.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $45.62. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 12 month low of $30.60 and a 12 month high of $53.86.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The transportation company reported $2.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.37 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $15.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.45 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.46% and a return on equity of 36.02%. The business’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.68 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 30th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This is a boost from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 30th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on DAL shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $59.00 target price for the company. HSBC started coverage on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Monday, May 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $72.80 target price for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $58.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $60.70.

Delta Air Lines Company 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.