Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Has $127.56 Million Stock Position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,838,051 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 112,701 shares during the quarter. Delta Air Lines makes up about 0.9% of Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $127,561,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in DAL. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter worth about $471,532,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 54.8% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,817,783 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $330,159,000 after buying an additional 2,058,744 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines by 23.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 9,496,296 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $659,043,000 after buying an additional 1,834,385 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 16,044.7% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,263,320 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $71,693,000 after buying an additional 1,255,495 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Delta Air Lines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $86,931,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.93% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Delta Air Lines from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. UBS Group increased their price target on Delta Air Lines from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Citigroup raised their price target on Delta Air Lines from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, HSBC dropped their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $80.20 to $79.30 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.85.

Delta Air Lines Price Performance

Shares of DAL opened at $79.55 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $68.81. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52-week low of $45.28 and a 52-week high of $83.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.26 billion, a PE ratio of 11.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.30.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 8th. The transportation company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. The firm 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 5.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Delta Air Lines

In other Delta Air Lines news, EVP John E. Laughter sold 15,000 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.61, for a total value of $1,074,150.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 54,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,893,364.09. This trade represents a 21.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Alain Bellemare sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.44, for a total value of $2,036,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 95,025 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,738,836. This trade represents a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 149,635 shares of company stock valued at $10,833,855. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.