Last week, Delta Air Lines, Inc.'s (NYSE:DAL) stock jumped 18%, but insiders who sold US$21m worth of stock in over the past year are likely to be in a better position. Selling at an average price of US$59.63, which is higher than the current price, may have been the best move for these insiders because their investment would have been worth less now than when they sold.

Although we don't think shareholders should simply follow insider transactions, logic dictates you should pay some attention to whether insiders are buying or selling shares.

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Delta Air Lines Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

The President, Glen Hauenstein, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$4.4m worth of shares at a price of US$58.30 each. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. It's of some comfort that this sale was conducted at a price well above the current share price, which is US$52.99. So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price.

Over the last year, we can see that insiders have bought 25.00k shares worth US$1.0m. But they sold 348.27k shares for US$21m. All up, insiders sold more shares in Delta Air Lines than they bought, over the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

View our latest analysis for Delta Air Lines NYSE:DAL Insider Trading Volume May 14th 2025

If you like to buy stocks that insiders are buying, rather than selling, then you might just love this freelist of companies. (Hint: Most of them are flying under the radar).

Insiders At Delta Air Lines Have Bought Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider buying at Delta Air Lines. Not only was there no selling that we can see, but they collectively bought US$601k worth of shares. This makes one think the business has some good points.

Insider Ownership Of Delta Air Lines

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. Delta Air Lines insiders own 0.4% of the company, currently worth about US$131m based on the recent share price. Most shareholders would be happy to see this sort of insider ownership, since it suggests that management incentives are well aligned with other shareholders.

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What Might The Insider Transactions At Delta Air Lines Tell Us?

It is good to see recent purchasing. On the other hand the transaction history, over the last year, isn't so positive. Overall, we'd prefer see a more sustained buying from directors, but with a significant insider holding and more recent purchases, Delta Air Lines insiders are reasonably well aligned, and optimistic for the future. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. To assist with this, we've discovered 2 warning signs that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Delta Air Lines.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this freelist of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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