United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) Shares Sold by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC decreased its stake in United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) by 11.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 39,869 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 5,225 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in United Airlines were worth $2,279,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sanders Capital LLC increased its position in shares of United Airlines by 12.4% in the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 9,457,587 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $539,650,000 after buying an additional 1,040,589 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in United Airlines by 29.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,601,425 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $272,559,000 after acquiring an additional 1,263,604 shares during the last quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP raised its position in United Airlines by 176.1% during the third quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 4,245,120 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $242,227,000 after acquiring an additional 2,707,442 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 41.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,112,583 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $177,604,000 after purchasing an additional 908,558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position 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 valued at $111,687,000 after purchasing an additional 1,905,664 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.69% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 30,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,190,744. The trade was a 32.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.12, for a total transaction of $5,707,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 63,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,049,536.88. This trade represents a 48.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 92,000 shares of company stock worth $8,158,900 over the last ninety days. 0.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Airlines Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of UAL opened at $95.11 on Friday. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.02 and a twelve month high of $105.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.44. 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 stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $84.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.49.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $14.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.76 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.65 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that United Airlines Holdings, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current year.

United Airlines announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, October 15th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to buy up to 7.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on UAL shares. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $139.00 price objective on shares of United Airlines in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America upped their price objective on United Airlines from $70.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on United Airlines from $88.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of United Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of United Airlines to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $98.95.

About United Airlines

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.