Zacks Investment Management Takes Position in American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ:AAL)

Zacks Investment Management purchased a new stake in shares of American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ:AAL - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 252,980 shares of the airline's stock, valued at approximately $4,409,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in American Airlines Group in the fourth quarter worth about $3,858,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in American Airlines Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,482,000. Amundi boosted its holdings in American Airlines Group by 31,647.8% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 426,691 shares of the airline's stock valued at $7,510,000 after purchasing an additional 425,347 shares during the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in American Airlines Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $689,000. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of American Airlines Group by 46.0% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 8,982 shares of the airline's stock worth $157,000 after purchasing an additional 2,830 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 52.44% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Airlines Group

In related news, SVP Angela Owens sold 51,906 shares of American Airlines Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.15, for a total transaction of $890,187.90. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 112,412 shares in the company, valued at $1,927,865.80. The trade was a 31.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Airlines Group Trading Down 4.1 %

Shares of AAL traded down $0.39 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $9.07. 59,905,200 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 38,125,108. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $12.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.33. American Airlines Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $8.50 and a 1-year high of $19.10. The company has a market cap of $5.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 1.17.

American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The airline reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.47. American Airlines Group had a net margin of 1.56% and a negative return on equity of 28.56%. Equities research analysts anticipate that American Airlines Group Inc. will post 2.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America lowered their price target on American Airlines Group from $16.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of American Airlines Group from $13.00 to $9.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of American Airlines Group to $18.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of American Airlines Group from $21.50 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Melius upgraded American Airlines Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $23.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Airlines Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $16.95.

American Airlines Group Company Profile

American Airlines Group Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a network air carrier. The company provides scheduled air transportation services for passengers and cargo through its hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington, DC, as well as through partner gateways in London, Doha, Madrid, Seattle/Tacoma, Sydney, and Tokyo.