Susquehanna Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) Stock

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) had its price target lifted by analysts at Susquehanna from $85.00 to $120.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “positive” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Susquehanna’s target price points to a potential upside of 15.70% from the company’s previous close.

UAL has been the subject of a number of other reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on United Airlines from $88.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on United Airlines from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 30th. Bank of America raised their target price on United Airlines from $70.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Dbs Bank upgraded shares of United Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Airlines has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $104.68.

United Airlines Price Performance

Shares of UAL opened at $103.72 on Tuesday. United Airlines has a 12-month low of $37.02 and a 12-month high of $105.09. The stock has a market cap of $34.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.44. The business’s fifty day moving average is $94.42 and its 200 day moving average is $66.42. 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 (NASDAQ:UAL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $14.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.76 billion. United Airlines had a return on equity of 30.72% and a net margin of 4.94%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.65 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that United Airlines will post 10.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Airlines declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, October 15th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the transportation company to purchase up to 7.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Airlines

In other news, EVP Torbjorn J. Enqvist sold 14,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 30,427 shares in the company, valued at $2,190,744. This represents a 32.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $6,049,536.88. The trade was a 48.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 92,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,158,900 in the last 90 days. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,321 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in United Airlines by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,647 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank increased its position in shares of United Airlines by 1.1% during the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 17,620 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,005,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 31.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 930 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wahed Invest LLC raised its stake in United Airlines by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 1,998 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $114,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. 69.69% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.