Delta Air Lines, Inc. $DAL Shares Purchased by Banco Santander S.A.

Banco Santander S.A. raised its holdings in Delta Air Lines, Inc. (NYSE:DAL) by 15.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 173,832 shares of the transportation company’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,697 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Delta Air Lines were worth $9,865,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. AlphaQuest LLC increased its holdings in shares of Delta Air Lines by 90.6% in the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 444 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its holdings in Delta Air Lines by 184.6% in the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 572 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Kilter Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Delta Air Lines in the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Delta Air Lines during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Delta Air Lines by 37.6% during the 3rd quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 779 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. 69.93% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Steven M. Sear sold 38,600 shares of Delta Air Lines stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.05, for a total value of $2,896,930.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 104,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,835,520.20. This trade represents a 26.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Edward H. Bastian sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.26, for a total value of $7,026,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,363,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $95,795,856.48. The trade was a 6.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 620,550 shares of company stock valued at $44,127,667. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key Delta Air Lines News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Delta announced another order to refresh its narrowbody fleet with 34 Airbus A321neo jets — these newer, more fuel-efficient aircraft improve unit costs and premium-seat capacity over time, supporting margin expansion and premium revenue potential. Delta orders 34 more Airbus A321neo jets in fleet renewal push
• Positive Sentiment: Management is also pursuing wider fleet growth (widebody expansion) to chase long‑haul and premium demand — a structural growth push that can boost long‑term revenue per available seat mile if executed well. Delta Air Lines Aims at Fleet Growth: More Upside Ahead?
• Neutral Sentiment: Yesterday Delta closed higher, reflecting recent operational strength and beat/guide context from January earnings, but that momentum was overtaken by today’s macro cost shock. Why the Market Dipped But Delta Air Lines (DAL) Gained Today
• Negative Sentiment: Crude oil surged today, pushing jet‑fuel expectations higher — investors fear rising fuel costs will compress airline margins and earnings, driving broad sector weakness and heavy selling in Delta shares. Why Delta (DAL) Shares Are Getting Obliterated Today
• Negative Sentiment: Sectorwide jet‑fuel pressure also hit low‑cost peers (e.g., Frontier), signaling the move is macro/commodity‑driven rather than company‑specific — that increases downside risk across airline stocks, including DAL. Why Frontier (ULCC) Shares Are Sliding Today
• Negative Sentiment: Delta CEO Edward Bastian sold 100,000 shares in a disclosed transaction last week — while insider sales can be routine, the timing contributes to negative sentiment when paired with sector pain. SEC filing

Delta Air Lines Stock Performance

NYSE DAL opened at $65.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.34. The company has a market cap of $42.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $69.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.99. Delta Air Lines, Inc. has a 1-year low of $34.74 and a 1-year high of $76.39.

Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 13th. The transportation company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $14.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.80 billion. Delta Air Lines had a net margin of 7.90% and a return on equity of 20.96%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.85 earnings per share. 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, analysts anticipate that Delta Air Lines, Inc. will post 7.63 EPS for the current year.

Delta Air Lines Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.1875 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 26th. This represents a $0.75 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Delta Air Lines’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DAL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Delta Air Lines from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of Delta Air Lines in a report on Friday, December 19th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Delta Air Lines from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Barclays increased their price objective on Delta Air Lines from $65.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Dbs Bank upgraded Delta Air Lines to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and twenty-two have given a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $80.47.

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.