United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $78.94.

UAL has been the topic of several research reports. Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of United Airlines from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of United Airlines from $66.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on United Airlines from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on United Airlines from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st.

United Airlines Price Performance

United Airlines stock opened at $89.43 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $62.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.17. United Airlines has a 12 month low of $37.02 and a 12 month high of $89.60. The company has a market cap of $29.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.79, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.39.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.23. United Airlines had a return on equity of 30.72% and a net margin of 4.94%. The firm had revenue of $14.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that United Airlines will post 10.18 EPS for the current year.

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

Insider Activity at United Airlines

In related news, EVP Torbjorn J. Enqvist sold 14,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.00, for a total value of $1,044,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 30,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,190,744. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other United Airlines news, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,012 shares in the company, valued at $3,218,565.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Torbjorn J. Enqvist sold 14,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.00, for a total transaction of $1,044,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 30,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,190,744. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Airlines

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UAL. Capital International Investors increased its stake in United Airlines by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 18,502,761 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $885,912,000 after purchasing an additional 429,501 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of United Airlines by 29.1% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,601,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $272,559,000 after buying an additional 1,263,604 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of United Airlines by 489.2% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,295,246 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $111,687,000 after buying an additional 1,905,664 shares during the period. Interval Partners LP bought a new stake in United Airlines during the 1st quarter valued at $103,354,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in United Airlines by 177.6% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,324,398 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $75,570,000 after buying an additional 847,348 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.69% of the company’s stock.

United Airlines Company Profile

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.