Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) Short Interest Update

Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL – Get Rating) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 21,770,000 shares, an increase of 5.0% from the February 13th total of 20,730,000 shares. Currently, 3.4% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 9,660,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

NYSE DAL traded down $0.92 on Friday, hitting $32.79. 4,292,632 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,143,427. The company has a market capitalization of $21.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.52 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.14. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $38.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $34.57. Delta Air Lines has a 52-week low of $27.20 and a 52-week high of $46.27.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 13th. The transportation company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $13.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.03 billion. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 45.69% and a net margin of 2.61%. Equities analysts expect that Delta Air Lines will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP William C. Carroll sold 15,529 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.20, for a total value of $593,207.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 16,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $640,996. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP William C. Carroll sold 15,529 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.20, for a total value of $593,207.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 16,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $640,996. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Francis S. Blake bought 12,880 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 18th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $38.58 per share, with a total value of $496,910.40. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 93,795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,618,611.10. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 43,980 shares of company stock worth $1,696,902. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Delta Air Lines

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 153.8% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,028 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 623 shares during the period. Ten Capital Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 200.0% during the fourth quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 900 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the period. Finally, First PREMIER Bank raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 151.7% during the third quarter. First PREMIER Bank now owns 1,095 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 660 shares during the period. 66.47% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DAL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Delta Air Lines in a research report on Friday, December 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $40.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 11th. Redburn Partners raised Delta Air Lines from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 8th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $40.00 to $43.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 10th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $55.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $49.47.

About Delta Air Lines

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Delta Air Lines, Inc engages in the provision of scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo. It operates through the Airline and Refinery segments. The Airline segment provides scheduled air transportation for passengers and cargo. The Refinery segment provides jet fuel to the airline segment.