Strategic Financial Concepts LLC Makes New $6.78 Million Investment in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 112,075 shares of the transportation company's stock, valued at approximately $6,781,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of 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 Delta Air Lines by 143.7% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 56,611 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $2,876,000 after purchasing an additional 33,378 shares during the period. Olstein Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in Delta Air Lines by 32.6% during the third quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 175,000 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $8,888,000 after buying an additional 43,000 shares in the last quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC acquired a new stake in Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter worth about $2,036,000. Finally, River Road Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 22.8% in the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 130,608 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $6,634,000 after buying an additional 24,249 shares during the period. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of DAL stock traded up $0.70 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $65.04. 7,613,276 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,158,825. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $64.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $56.05. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.29 and a 1-year 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 company has a market cap of $42.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.36.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 10th. The transportation company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.09. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 30.41%. The business had revenue of $15.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.20 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.28 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. Delta Air Lines's payout ratio is 11.26%.

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In related news, SVP William C. Carroll sold 6,783 shares of Delta Air Lines 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 10,016 shares of the company's stock, valued at $660,455.04. The trade was a 40.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 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 transaction of $6,405,943.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 439,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,721,357.15. This represents a 17.25 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 162,886 shares of company stock worth $11,116,463 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. StockNews.com upgraded Delta Air Lines from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Susquehanna upped their price objective 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. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective 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. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus 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.