Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Given New $59.00 Price Target at TD Cowen

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) had its price target decreased by TD Cowen from $61.00 to $59.00 in a research note released on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. TD Cowen currently has a buy rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Delta Air Lines in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. They set a buy rating and a $59.00 price target for the company. Citigroup raised their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley restated an overweight rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $66.00 to $62.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $50.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines has a consensus rating of Buy and an average price target of $60.70.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Delta Air Lines stock opened at $45.44 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $49.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $45.69. The company has a market capitalization of $29.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.54, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.35. Delta Air Lines has a fifty-two week low of $30.60 and a fifty-two week high of $53.86.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The transportation company reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.37 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $15.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.45 billion. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 36.02% and a net margin of 7.46%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.68 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines will post 6.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 30th. This is a boost from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is currently 5.76%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Delta Air Lines news, Director Willie Cw Chiang bought 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $49.50 per share, with a total value of $495,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $495,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 4,846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.30, for a total value of $253,445.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 112,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,879,618.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Willie Cw Chiang acquired 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $49.50 per share, with a total value of $495,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $495,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 178,919 shares of company stock worth $8,834,653 over the last quarter. 0.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Delta Air Lines

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DAL. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 22.5% in the fourth quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 32,038 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,289,000 after buying an additional 5,876 shares during the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 98.3% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,213 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 1,097 shares during the period. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 13,922 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $560,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the period. Advisor Resource Council acquired a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $204,000. Finally, HFG Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter worth approximately $445,000. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.