United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) Shares Bought by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL - Free Report) by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 378,214 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,601 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.12% of United Airlines worth $21,581,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of United Airlines by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 18,502,761 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $885,912,000 after purchasing an additional 429,501 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in United Airlines by 29.1% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,601,425 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $272,559,000 after buying an additional 1,263,604 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in United Airlines by 489.2% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,295,246 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $111,687,000 after buying an additional 1,905,664 shares during the last quarter. Interval Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of United Airlines during the 1st quarter worth about $103,354,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 177.6% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,324,398 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $75,570,000 after acquiring an additional 847,348 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.69% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on UAL shares. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of United Airlines from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of United Airlines from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Barclays boosted their target price on United Airlines from $75.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $84.30.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Torbjorn J. Enqvist sold 14,500 shares of United Airlines stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.00, for a total transaction of $1,044,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 30,427 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,190,744. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.44, for a total transaction of $1,407,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,012 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,218,565.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Torbjorn J. Enqvist sold 14,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.00, for a total value of $1,044,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 30,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,190,744. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

United Airlines Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UAL traded up $1.54 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $91.32. The stock had a trading volume of 4,688,246 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,496,995. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.79. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.93. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.02 and a twelve month high of $93.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.11, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.39.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $14.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.76 billion. United Airlines had a return on equity of 30.72% and a net margin of 4.94%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.65 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that United Airlines Holdings, Inc. will post 10.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Airlines announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, October 15th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to purchase up to 7.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

United Airlines Company Profile

United Airlines Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides air transportation services in North America, Asia, Europe, Africa, the Pacific, the Middle East, and Latin America. The company transports people and cargo through its mainline and regional fleets. It also offers catering, ground handling, flight academy, and maintenance services for third parties.