United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Analysts

United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the seventeen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $102.28.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Melius Research upgraded United Airlines to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Susquehanna increased their target price on United Airlines from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of United Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $88.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of United Airlines from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday.

United Airlines Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UAL opened at $97.10 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. United Airlines has a twelve month low of $37.02 and a twelve month high of $105.09. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.71 and a 200-day moving average of $64.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.44.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $14.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.76 billion. United Airlines had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 30.72%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.65 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Airlines will post 10.27 EPS for the current year.

United Airlines announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, October 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the transportation company to reacquire up to 7.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Airlines news, EVP Torbjorn J. Enqvist sold 14,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.00, for a total value of $1,044,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 30,427 shares in the company, valued at $2,190,744. The trade was a 32.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of United Airlines stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.44, for a total value of $1,407,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,218,565.28. This trade represents a 30.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 92,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,158,900. Company insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United Airlines

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of UAL. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 3.2% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 378,214 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $21,581,000 after purchasing an additional 11,601 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in United Airlines by 214.7% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 202,552 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $11,558,000 after acquiring an additional 138,191 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in United Airlines in the 3rd quarter worth about $129,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of United Airlines by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,311,220 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $477,526,000 after acquiring an additional 168,498 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 28.0% during the third quarter. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. now owns 53,704 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $3,064,000 after purchasing an additional 11,743 shares in the last quarter. 69.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.