Sowell Financial Services LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Sowell Financial Services LLC lifted its position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 13.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,898 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,774 shares during the quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $2,474,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its position in Delta Air Lines by 48.1% in the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 474 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Shares of Delta Air Lines stock opened at $53.18 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.34. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52 week low of $37.29 and a 52 week high of $69.98. 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 firm’s 50 day moving average is $63.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $57.88.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The transportation company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.09. The company 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 30.41%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.28 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

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 given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on DAL shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $88.00 target price on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $78.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Delta Air Lines from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.22.

Insider Transactions at Delta Air Lines

In other news, EVP Rahul D. Samant sold 38,023 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.89, for a total transaction of $2,467,312.47. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 52,789 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,425,478.21. This trade represents a 41.87 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP William C. Carroll sold 8,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.02, for a total transaction of $554,568.00. Following the transaction, 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 162,886 shares of company stock worth $11,116,463. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

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.