Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $61.36 and last traded at $61.36, with a volume of 415153 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $58.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Susquehanna increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $50.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $61.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Delta Air Lines to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.40.

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market cap of $40.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.33. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.94.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 10th. The transportation company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $15.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.65 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.71% and a return on equity of 29.93%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.03 EPS. Research analysts expect that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is currently 8.33%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 10,279 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total transaction of $603,582.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 78,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,607,112.48. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 10,279 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total transaction of $603,582.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 78,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,607,112.48. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 19,490 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.26, for a total transaction of $1,077,017.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 121,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,739,564.86. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 111,200 shares of company stock valued at $6,269,469. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the second quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the second quarter valued at about $41,000. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.