American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL) Sets New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Shares of American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ:AAL) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $18.65 and last traded at $18.64, with a volume of 30594683 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $18.27.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AAL shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of American Airlines Group from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Raymond James raised American Airlines Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $24.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 30th. Bank of America raised American Airlines Group from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $12.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised American Airlines Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $14.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on American Airlines Group from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $19.05.

American Airlines Group Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.16. The company has a market capitalization of $11.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.61, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.35.

American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The airline reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.47. American Airlines Group had a negative return on equity of 18.62% and a net margin of 0.51%. Equities research analysts predict that American Airlines Group Inc. will post 1.73 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at American Airlines Group

In other American Airlines Group news, CEO Robert D. Isom, Jr. sold 102,441 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.21, for a total value of $1,763,009.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,967,984 shares in the company, valued at $51,079,004.64. This represents a 3.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of American Airlines Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in American Airlines Group by 133.1% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,592 shares of the airline’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 909 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Airlines Group by 56.2% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,533 shares of the airline’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 911 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its position in American Airlines Group by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 14,894 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $169,000 after acquiring an additional 1,126 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in American Airlines Group by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 54,178 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $614,000 after acquiring an additional 1,468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coastwise Capital Group LLC lifted its position in American Airlines Group by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Coastwise Capital Group LLC now owns 37,840 shares of the airline’s stock worth $425,000 after acquiring an additional 1,900 shares during the period. 52.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About American Airlines Group

American Airlines Group Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a network air carrier. The company provides scheduled air transportation services for passengers and cargo through its hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington, DC, as well as through partner gateways in London, Doha, Madrid, Seattle/Tacoma, Sydney, and Tokyo.