United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) Hits New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $108.00 to $133.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. United Airlines traded as high as $110.33 and last traded at $108.78, with a volume of 2935376 shares. The stock had previously closed at $103.72.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 30th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $85.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays lifted their target price on United Airlines from $75.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of United Airlines from $70.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of United Airlines from $88.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Airlines news, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.12, for a total transaction of $5,707,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 63,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,049,536.88. This represents a 48.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of United Airlines stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.44, for a total transaction of $1,407,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,218,565.28. This trade represents a 30.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 92,000 shares of company stock worth $8,158,900 over the last quarter. 0.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Airlines

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in United Airlines during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of United Airlines during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in United Airlines during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Airlines by 3,504.8% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 757 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 108.6% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 753 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. 69.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Airlines Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $35.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.15, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a fifty day moving average of $94.93 and a 200 day moving average of $66.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.23. United Airlines had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 30.72%. The firm had revenue of $14.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that United Airlines Holdings, Inc. will post 10.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Airlines declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, October 15th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to repurchase up to 7.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

About United Airlines

United Airlines Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides air transportation services in North America, Asia, Europe, Africa, the Pacific, the Middle East, and Latin America. The company transports people and cargo through its mainline and regional fleets. It also offers catering, ground handling, flight academy, and maintenance services for third parties.