American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL) Upgraded at Melius Research

American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Melius Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of American Airlines Group from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on American Airlines Group from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Barclays boosted their price objective on American Airlines Group from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Bank of America increased their target price on American Airlines Group from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded American Airlines Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $24.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, December 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $18.10.

American Airlines Group Price Performance

American Airlines Group stock traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $17.69. 25,445,652 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 25,028,111. The firm has a market cap of $11.62 billion, a PE ratio of 53.61, a PEG ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.58. American Airlines Group has a 12 month low of $9.07 and a 12 month high of $18.20.

American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The airline reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.14. American Airlines Group had a negative return on equity of 18.62% and a net margin of 0.51%. The company had revenue of $13.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.38 earnings per share. American Airlines Group's revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Airlines Group will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at American Airlines Group

In other American Airlines Group news, CEO Robert D. Isom, Jr. sold 102,441 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.21, for a total value of $1,763,009.61. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,967,984 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,079,004.64. This trade represents a 3.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of American Airlines Group

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AAL. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Airlines Group by 56.2% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,533 shares of the airline's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 911 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in American Airlines Group by 8.2% during the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 14,894 shares of the airline's stock valued at $169,000 after purchasing an additional 1,126 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in American Airlines Group by 2.8% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 54,178 shares of the airline's stock worth $614,000 after purchasing an additional 1,468 shares during the period. Coastwise Capital Group LLC increased its stake in shares of American Airlines Group by 5.3% in the third quarter. Coastwise Capital Group LLC now owns 37,840 shares of the airline's stock worth $425,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of American Airlines Group by 20.2% in the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,663 shares of the airline's stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 2,128 shares during the period. 52.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About American Airlines Group

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.