Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL)

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 44.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,356 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 24,647 shares during the period. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $1,593,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines in the third quarter worth $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Delta Air Lines during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Unique Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the second quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in Delta Air Lines during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Joanne D. Smith sold 3,431 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total transaction of $173,128.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 108,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,499,635.40. This represents a 3.05 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP William C. Carroll sold 21,530 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.62, for a total value of $1,305,148.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 19,756 shares in the company, valued at $1,197,608.72. The trade was a 52.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 140,240 shares of company stock valued at $8,044,893. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Delta Air Lines Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of DAL stock opened at $64.84 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.84 billion, a PE ratio of 9.01, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.33. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52-week low of $35.28 and a 52-week high of $66.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a current ratio of 0.39.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 10th. The transportation company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.02). Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 29.93% and a net margin of 7.71%. The firm had revenue of $15.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.65 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. Delta Air Lines’s payout ratio is presently 8.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DAL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $60.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Delta Air Lines from $58.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $83.00 target price on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research report on Friday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. One 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.22.

Delta Air Lines 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.