Blue Grotto Capital LLC Invests $25.05 Million in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Blue Grotto Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 414,069 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $25,051,000. Delta Air Lines makes up about 4.6% of Blue Grotto Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Blue Grotto Capital LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Delta Air Lines at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 52,390 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $3,170,000 after acquiring an additional 2,432 shares during the period. FineMark National Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. FineMark National Bank & Trust now owns 17,810 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $1,078,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares in the last quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC boosted its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 41,790 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $2,528,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Corebridge Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 221,115 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $13,377,000 after purchasing an additional 9,577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. 69.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DAL traded down $2.36 during trading on Friday, reaching $43.80. 15,126,638 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,046,107. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.34. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.29 and a 12 month high of $69.98. The company has a 50 day moving average of $58.94 and a 200-day moving average of $58.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The transportation company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.09. The company 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 for the quarter was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.28 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. Delta Air Lines's dividend payout ratio is currently 11.26%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Rahul D. Samant sold 38,023 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.89, for a total value of $2,467,312.47. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 52,789 shares of the company's stock, 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 91,710 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.85, for a total value of $6,405,943.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 439,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,721,357.15. The trade was a 17.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 162,886 shares of company stock valued at $11,116,463 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on DAL. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Delta Air Lines from $59.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. TD Cowen increased their target price on Delta Air Lines from $78.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Delta Air Lines from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $72.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.29.

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.