QRG Capital Management Inc. Trims Stake in SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW)

QRG Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW) by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,658 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 648 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in SkyWest were worth $1,161,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in SkyWest by 2.6% during the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 20,249 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $1,722,000 after buying an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in SkyWest during the third quarter worth approximately $226,000. Highland Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in SkyWest in the third quarter valued at approximately $223,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of SkyWest by 8,402.9% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,891 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 2,857 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of SkyWest by 20.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,558 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $388,000 after buying an additional 767 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.30% of the company’s stock.

SkyWest Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of SKYW opened at $112.90 on Friday. SkyWest, Inc. has a 52-week low of $41.96 and a 52-week high of $115.03. The stock has a market cap of $4.55 billion, a PE ratio of 19.30 and a beta of 1.93. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $88.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The transportation company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $912.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $896.21 million. SkyWest had a net margin of 7.29% and a return on equity of 11.02%. SkyWest’s quarterly revenue was up 19.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.55 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that SkyWest, Inc. will post 7.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other SkyWest news, insider Wade J. Steel sold 19,079 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.48, for a total value of $1,993,373.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 97,654 shares in the company, valued at $10,202,889.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Russell A. Childs sold 27,903 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.47, for a total transaction of $3,110,347.41. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 349,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $38,964,115.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Wade J. Steel sold 19,079 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.48, for a total transaction of $1,993,373.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,654 shares in the company, valued at $10,202,889.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 92,467 shares of company stock worth $10,082,596 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of SkyWest from $95.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of SkyWest from $100.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $101.33.

SkyWest Company Profile

SkyWest, Inc is the holding company for two scheduled passenger airline operations and an aircraft leasing company. SkyWest’s airline companies provide commercial air service in cities throughout North America with nearly 3,000 daily flights carrying more than 53 million passengers annually. SkyWest Airlines operates through partnerships with United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and Alaska Airlines.