Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:VLRS) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:VLRS - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 915,300 shares, an increase of 99.2% from the February 13th total of 459,600 shares. Approximately 1.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 606,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days.

Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación Price Performance

NYSE VLRS traded up $0.13 on Tuesday, hitting $5.67. The company had a trading volume of 1,201,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 663,236. Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación has a 12-month low of $5.15 and a 12-month high of $9.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The company's fifty day moving average price is $7.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.33. The company has a market capitalization of $660.53 million, a PE ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 2.48.

Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación (NYSE:VLRS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The transportation company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.16). Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación had a net margin of 5.99% and a return on equity of 71.50%. The company had revenue of $835.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $709.48 million. As a group, analysts predict that Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación will post 1.21 earnings per share for the current year.

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Institutional Investors Weigh In On Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of VLRS. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new position in Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación in the fourth quarter worth $14,786,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación during the 4th quarter worth about $4,550,000. WCM Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 2,479,591 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $18,423,000 after acquiring an additional 291,252 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,106,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación by 236.2% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 227,601 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,693,000 after purchasing an additional 159,900 shares in the last quarter. 53.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Itau BBA Securities started coverage on shares of Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $12.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $12.88.

Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación Company Profile

Controladora Vuela Compañía de Aviación, SAB. de C.V., through its subsidiary, Concesionaria Vuela Compañía de Aviación, SAP.I. de C.V., provides air transportation services for passengers, cargo, and mail in Mexico and internationally. The company operates approximately 590 daily flights on routes connecting 43 cities in Mexico, 22 cities in the United States, 4 cities in Central America, and 2 cities in South America.