Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $150.74 Million Position in Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL

Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 1.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,655,412 shares of the transportation company’s stock after buying an additional 47,631 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.41% of Delta Air Lines worth $150,735,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in DAL. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Delta Air Lines in the third quarter valued at about $1,041,000. CreativeOne Wealth LLC bought a new position in Delta Air Lines during the third quarter worth about $265,000. Cladis Investment Advisory LLC bought a new position in Delta Air Lines during the third quarter worth about $227,000. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 3.1% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 283,512 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $16,089,000 after purchasing an additional 8,401 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Korea Investment CORP boosted its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 16.0% during the third quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 182,302 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $10,346,000 after purchasing an additional 25,125 shares in the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Rahul D. Samant sold 62,528 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.18, for a total value of $4,388,215.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 20,939 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,469,499.02. The trade was a 74.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.26, for a total transaction of $7,026,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,363,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $95,795,856.48. This trade represents a 6.83% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 620,550 shares of company stock valued at $44,127,667 in the last 90 days. 0.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Delta Air Lines News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Unusual bullish options activity — Traders bought roughly 94,764 Delta call options on Friday (about a 153% rise vs. typical call volume), which suggests some investors are positioning for an upside rebound or volatility-driven trading interest.
• Positive Sentiment: Wall‑street analyst stance remains supportive — Brokerages show an average “Buy” recommendation and recent price‑target coverage keeps upside (median target ~ $77), providing a valuation anchor for longer‑term investors. Delta Receives Average “Buy” from Brokerages
• Neutral Sentiment: Executive leadership reshuffle — Delta announced a broad C‑suite reorganization (CFO moving roles and other changes). Management moves can be positive if they improve execution but may create near‑term uncertainty until the new structure proves out. Delta reshuffles top ranks as CFO Janki moves to COO, Carter to president
• Neutral Sentiment: Competitive/industry moves — Republic Airways’ debt‑free merger with Mesa expands regional capacity and partnership reach (including with Delta); this is more of an industry‑structure development than an immediate company blow. Republic Airways Debt Free Mesa Merger Tests Earnings And Valuation Story
• Negative Sentiment: Middle East conflict and route disruption — Delta suspended New York–Tel Aviv flights through at least March 22 and faces regional airspace disruptions. That directly pressures revenues on exposed routes and raises operational complexity. Delta Suspension Of Tel Aviv Flights Tests Margins And Growth Narrative
• Negative Sentiment: Rising oil / jet‑fuel concerns and sector sell‑off — Higher crude pushed airline peers lower as investors price in higher fuel costs and margin pressure; Delta is trading down alongside the sector. Delta falls as oil prices climb
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/headline market weakness — Broader market slippage tied to the Iran war and a weak U.S. jobs report is weighing on cyclical and travel names, adding downward pressure on DAL. Stocks Slump on Iran War and Weak US Jobs Report

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on DAL shares. UBS Group dropped their target price on Delta Air Lines from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered Delta Air Lines from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays upped their price target on Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Delta Air Lines in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $80.38.

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

NYSE:DAL opened at $59.17 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 1 year low of $34.74 and a 1 year high of $76.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $68.99 and a 200-day moving average of $64.16.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 13th. The transportation company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.02. Delta Air Lines had a return on equity of 20.96% and a net margin of 7.90%.The business had revenue of $14.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.85 EPS. Delta Air Lines’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Delta Air Lines has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.900 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 6.500-7.500 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 26th will be paid a $0.1875 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 26th. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.78%.

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.