Burney Co. Boosts Stock Holdings in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Burney Co. raised its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 159.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,946 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,183 shares during the period. Burney Co.’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $715,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in DAL. American International Group Inc. raised its stake 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 in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Delta Air Lines by 132.3% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 466,741 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $18,777,000 after acquiring an additional 265,852 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter worth approximately $4,241,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised 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 purchased a new stake in Delta Air Lines during the 1st quarter valued at $749,000. Institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Delta Air Lines

In related news, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 4,846 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 112,421 shares in the company, valued at $5,879,618.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Willie Cw Chiang bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $43.90 per share, for a total transaction of $439,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $878,000. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 4,846 shares of the 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 112,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,879,618.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

DAL traded down $1.67 on Friday, reaching $39.83. 9,378,288 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,232,310. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a twelve month low of $30.60 and a twelve month high of $53.86. The stock has a market cap of $25.71 billion, a PE ratio of 5.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $47.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.82.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its 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). Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 36.02% and a net margin of 7.46%. The company had revenue of $15.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.26 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 30th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.51%. This is a positive change from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, July 30th. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is presently 8.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DAL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup upped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on Delta Air Lines from $66.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $47.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. HSBC assumed coverage on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Monday, May 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $72.80 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $60.70.

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.