United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) Receives $98.95 Average Target Price from Brokerages

United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) has received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the seventeen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $98.95.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $139.00 price target on shares of United Airlines in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. TD Cowen raised their target price on United Airlines from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $119.00 price target on shares of United Airlines in a report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays raised their price objective on United Airlines from $75.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on United Airlines from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st.

Insider Transactions at United Airlines

In related news, EVP Torbjorn J. Enqvist sold 14,500 shares of the firm’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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,190,744. This trade represents a 32.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,012 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,218,565.28. The trade was a 30.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 92,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,158,900. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

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

United Airlines Stock Down 1.2 %

United Airlines stock opened at $99.65 on Wednesday. United Airlines has a one year low of $37.02 and a one year high of $105.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $90.77 and a 200 day moving average of $63.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market cap of $32.77 billion, a PE ratio of 12.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.44.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 EPS 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 analyst estimates of $14.76 billion. United Airlines had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 30.72%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that United Airlines will post 10.27 EPS for the current year.

United Airlines declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, October 15th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to reacquire up to 7.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.