Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) Short Interest Update

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 21,080,000 shares, a decline of 20.4% from the February 28th total of 26,480,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 9,690,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Approximately 3.3% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 91,710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.85, for a total transaction of $6,405,943.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 439,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,721,357.15. This trade represents a 17.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP William C. Carroll sold 8,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.02, for a total transaction of $554,568.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 19,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,304,291.12. This trade represents a 29.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 162,886 shares of company stock valued at $11,116,463. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 404,638 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $20,552,000 after buying an additional 12,450 shares during the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 2.6% during the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 44,735 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,272,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 16.0% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 36,571 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,857,000 after purchasing an additional 5,046 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 2.8% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 90,741 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,609,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 12.5% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,329,941 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $67,548,000 after purchasing an additional 147,438 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Stock Up 2.3 %

NYSE DAL traded up $0.96 on Wednesday, hitting $43.38. 10,016,336 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,083,110. Delta Air Lines has a fifty-two week low of $37.29 and a fifty-two week high of $69.98. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $57.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $58.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a market cap of $28.04 billion, a PE ratio of 8.14, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.34.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The transportation company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $15.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.20 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 30.41%. The company’s revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.28 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is currently 11.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on DAL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $83.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com cut Delta Air Lines from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $59.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Raymond James cut their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $62.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $71.77.

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.