Nkcfo LLC Makes New Investment in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Nkcfo LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 4,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $242,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 268,636 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $13,644,000 after purchasing an additional 13,802 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 143.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 56,611 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,876,000 after buying an additional 33,378 shares in the last quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. boosted its position in Delta Air Lines by 32.6% in the third quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 175,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $8,888,000 after purchasing an additional 43,000 shares during the last quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC bought a new position in Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,036,000. Finally, River Road Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 130,608 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $6,634,000 after purchasing an additional 24,249 shares during the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In other news, SVP William C. Carroll sold 6,783 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.94, for a total value of $447,271.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 10,016 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $660,455.04. This represents a 40.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Rahul D. Samant sold 38,023 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.89, for a total value of $2,467,312.47. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 52,789 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,425,478.21. This represents a 41.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 162,886 shares of company stock worth $11,116,463 over the last quarter. 0.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Delta Air Lines Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE:DAL opened at $65.41 on Friday. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.29 and a 12-month high of $69.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $64.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.36.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The transportation company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $15.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.20 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 30.43%. The company’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.28 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on DAL. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $59.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $58.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of Delta Air Lines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $78.22.

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.