Investors Purchase Large Volume of JetBlue Airways Call Options (NASDAQ:JBLU)

JetBlue Airways Co. (NASDAQ:JBLU - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Investors acquired 58,522 call options on the company. This is an increase of 149% compared to the average volume of 23,496 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of JetBlue Airways from $6.85 to $7.60 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of JetBlue Airways to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $8.00 target price on shares of JetBlue Airways in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Seaport Res Ptn cut JetBlue Airways from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $6.50 price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways in a report on Friday, January 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, JetBlue Airways currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $6.26.

JetBlue Airways Stock Up 1.0 %

JBLU stock traded up $0.08 during trading on Friday, hitting $7.32. 8,900,403 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 23,357,313. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.08, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.18. The stock has a market cap of $2.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.14 and a beta of 1.83. JetBlue Airways has a 1 year low of $4.49 and a 1 year high of $8.31. The firm's 50 day moving average is $7.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $6.49.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The transportation company reported ($0.21) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.21. JetBlue Airways had a negative net margin of 8.57% and a negative return on equity of 9.31%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.19) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that JetBlue Airways will post -0.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at JetBlue Airways

In other news, CFO Ursula L. Hurley sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.50, for a total transaction of $112,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 41,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $313,747.50. This represents a 26.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Nik Mittal bought 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $6.14 per share, for a total transaction of $614,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 116,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at $714,960.02. The trade was a 608.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of JetBlue Airways by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 30,416 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 1,823 shares during the period. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of JetBlue Airways by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,650 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $90,000 after buying an additional 1,850 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in shares of JetBlue Airways by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 22,613 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $178,000 after acquiring an additional 2,095 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC grew its holdings in JetBlue Airways by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 23,181 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $182,000 after acquiring an additional 2,284 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in JetBlue Airways by 130.8% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,478 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 2,538 shares during the period. 83.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About JetBlue Airways

JetBlue Airways Corporation provides air transportation services. The company operates a fleet of Airbus A321, Airbus A220, Airbus A321neo, Airbus A320 Restyled, Airbus A320, Airbus A321 with Mint, Airbus A321neo with Mint, Airbus A321neoLR with Mint, and Embraer E190 aircraft. It also serves 100 destinations across the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America, Canada, and Europe.