Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Has $7.17 Million Stake in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its stake in shares of Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 320.4% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 107,799 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 82,158 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $7,166,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the first quarter worth about $219,000. Aristides Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 14.4% in the first quarter. Aristides Capital LLC now owns 143,418 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $9,534,000 after acquiring an additional 18,086 shares during the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. boosted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 13.7% in the first quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 17,943 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,193,000 after acquiring an additional 2,166 shares during the last quarter. Inceptionr LLC acquired a new stake in Delta Air Lines during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $709,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Delta Air Lines by 28.9% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,339,423 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $89,045,000 after purchasing an additional 300,288 shares during the period. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

Shares of DAL stock opened at $86.30 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $56.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.29. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 52 week low of $50.44 and a 52 week high of $95.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $84.81 and a 200-day moving average of $73.91.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 9th. The transportation company reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $17.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.43 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 17.52%. Delta Air Lines’s quarterly revenue was up 18.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.10 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.215 per share. This is an increase from Delta Air Lines’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 9th. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.26%.

Key Delta Air Lines News

Here are the key news stories impacting Delta Air Lines this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised Delta’s fair-value estimate from $81.81 to $105.52 after its second-quarter results and management commentary. The revisions cite stronger earnings execution, improving margins, and the growing contribution of premium travel and loyalty revenue, which can make results less dependent on main-cabin ticket demand. Delta Air Lines stock fair value boost
• Positive Sentiment: A separate analysis argues that Delta’s expansion into premium seating, loyalty, and other diversified revenue streams may reduce the company’s historical cyclicality. That supports the case for a higher valuation relative to the heavily cyclical airline multiples investors have typically assigned to DAL. Delta profits versus GE premiums analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Delta and DraftKings launched SkyPicks, a no-wagering sports contest available through Delta Sync WiFi. The program offers passengers the chance to win Delta gift cards and could modestly improve onboard engagement, brand loyalty, and ancillary revenue without involving deposits or cash betting. Delta and DraftKings add sports contests
• Neutral Sentiment: The broader airline backdrop remains mixed: premium and corporate demand are improving at American Airlines, but fuel, labor, and debt costs remain risks across the industry. Delta’s premium-heavy strategy may offer some protection, while fuel-price volatility remains an important factor for DAL investors. American Airlines revenue and fuel risks

Insider Transactions at Delta Air Lines

In other news, EVP Allison C. Ausband sold 9,710 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.00, for a total value of $737,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 138,854 shares in the company, valued at $10,552,904. This trade represents a 6.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 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 directly owned 95,025 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,738,836. The trade was a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 65,331 shares of company stock worth $5,036,638 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. HSBC dropped their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $80.20 to $79.30 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Delta Air Lines from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $106.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Seaport Research Partners boosted their target price on shares of Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $81.00 to $73.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Twenty-three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $100.40.

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.