Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Buys 6,664 Shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 165.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,682 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 6,664 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $646,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DAL. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Hemington Wealth Management raised its stake in Delta Air Lines by 48.1% in the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 474 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In other Delta Air Lines news, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 91,710 shares of the business’s 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. The trade was a 17.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Rahul D. Samant sold 17,970 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.08, for a total transaction of $1,241,367.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 35,889 shares in the company, valued at $2,479,212.12. The trade was a 33.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 162,886 shares of company stock valued at $11,116,463. 0.96% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Delta Air Lines Trading Down 3.0 %

Shares of Delta Air Lines stock opened at $45.29 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.28 billion, a PE ratio of 8.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $62.89 and its 200 day moving average is $57.90. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 1 year low of $37.29 and a 1 year high of $69.98.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) 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 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 previous year, the firm posted $1.28 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $83.00 price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Friday, November 15th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $90.00 to $77.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $59.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Delta Air Lines currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $76.60.

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.