United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) Upgraded at StockNews.com

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on UAL. UBS Group began coverage on shares of United Airlines in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $47.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of United Airlines from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Evercore ISI raised shares of United Airlines from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $58.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of United Airlines from $66.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of United Airlines from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.53.

United Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:UAL opened at $54.03 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.75. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $44.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.67. United Airlines has a fifty-two week low of $33.68 and a fifty-two week high of $58.23. The firm has a market cap of $17.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.55.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The transportation company reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $13.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.55 billion. United Airlines had a net margin of 4.90% and a return on equity of 39.85%. United Airlines’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.46 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that United Airlines will post 9.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kate Gebo sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.86, for a total value of $762,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,925,060.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. U S Global Investors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 31.9% in the 4th quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. now owns 4,159,899 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $171,637,000 after buying an additional 1,005,170 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of United Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,114,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of United Airlines by 23.5% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,649,616 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $196,679,000 after purchasing an additional 885,199 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of United Airlines by 1,993.1% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 861,835 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $36,456,000 after purchasing an additional 820,660 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of United Airlines by 24.4% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,143,202 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $170,974,000 after purchasing an additional 812,257 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.