JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) Trading 9.9% Higher - Still a Buy?

Shares of JetBlue Airways Co. (NASDAQ:JBLU - Get Free Report) shot up 9.9% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $6.94 and last traded at $6.95. 6,723,207 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 24,719,965 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.32.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways from $5.50 to $5.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways from $8.00 to $6.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of JetBlue Airways from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $8.00 price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways from $6.85 to $7.60 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, JetBlue Airways has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $6.51.

JetBlue Airways Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.62 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.98. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $7.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.43.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The transportation company reported ($0.21) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.21. JetBlue Airways had a negative return on equity of 9.29% and a negative net margin of 8.57%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.19) earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that JetBlue Airways Co. will post -0.58 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On JetBlue Airways

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in JetBlue Airways by 164.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 11,602 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 7,212 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in JetBlue Airways during the 4th quarter worth approximately $89,000. Compass Capital Corp MA ADV bought a new position in JetBlue Airways during the 4th quarter worth approximately $240,000. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. bought a new position in JetBlue Airways during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,651,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its holdings in JetBlue Airways by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 57,800 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $454,000 after buying an additional 9,400 shares during the last quarter. 83.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

JetBlue Airways Company Profile

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.