Westpac Banking Corp Increases Position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Westpac Banking Corp boosted its holdings in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 709.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 10,485 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,189 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $728,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 90.6% in the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 444 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Accredited Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 1,983.3% in the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 500 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares during the period. Lloyd Advisory Services LLC. purchased a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. SWAN Capital LLC grew its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 1,016.0% in the third quarter. SWAN Capital LLC now owns 558 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. Finally, Camelot Portfolios LLC purchased a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on DAL shares. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn cut their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.85.

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In related news, EVP John E. Laughter sold 69,304 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.15, for a total transaction of $4,723,067.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 69,369 shares in the company, valued at $4,727,497.35. This represents a 49.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Allison C. Ausband sold 9,710 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total transaction of $737,960.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 138,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,552,904. This trade represents a 6.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 149,635 shares of company stock worth $10,833,855 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE:DAL opened at $78.95 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $71.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.49. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52 week low of $45.28 and a 52 week high of $83.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market cap of $51.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.51, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.30.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $14.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.05 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 6.87% and a return on equity of 20.28%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.1875 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio is 10.93%.

About Delta Air Lines

Delta Air Lines is a major U.S.-based global airline that provides scheduled passenger and cargo air transportation, aircraft maintenance and repair services, and related travel products. Its operations include mainline domestic and international passenger services, a branded regional network operating under the Delta Connection name, dedicated air cargo carriage, and in-house maintenance, repair and overhaul through Delta TechOps. Delta offers a range of cabin products for different customer segments, including premium business-class service on long-haul routes and tiered economy offerings on domestic and international flights, and it markets customer loyalty benefits through the SkyMiles frequent-flyer program.

The carrier operates a mixed fleet of narrow- and wide-body aircraft from multiple U.S.