UBS Group Reaffirms "Buy" Rating for United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL)

UBS Group reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL - Free Report) in a research note released on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. UBS Group currently has a $139.00 price target on the transportation company's stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of United Airlines from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of United Airlines from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on United Airlines from $75.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, United Airlines currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $96.15.

United Airlines Trading Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ:UAL traded up $1.10 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $97.93. 4,429,002 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,392,668. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $56.26. United Airlines has a 52-week low of $37.02 and a 52-week high of $101.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market cap of $32.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.39.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.23. United Airlines had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 30.72%. The business had revenue of $14.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.65 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that United Airlines will post 10.23 EPS for the current year.

United Airlines declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, October 15th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the transportation company to reacquire up to 7.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.44, for a total value of $1,407,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 40,012 shares in the company, valued at $3,218,565.28. This trade represents a 30.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Torbjorn J. Enqvist sold 14,500 shares of the 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 30,427 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,190,744. This trade represents a 32.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.63% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Airlines

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UAL. Castle Hook Partners LP grew its position in shares of United Airlines by 176.1% in the 3rd quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 4,245,120 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $242,227,000 after acquiring an additional 2,707,442 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of United Airlines by 489.2% in the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,295,246 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $111,687,000 after acquiring an additional 1,905,664 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of United Airlines by 29.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,601,425 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $272,559,000 after acquiring an additional 1,263,604 shares during the period. Rubric Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of United Airlines in the 3rd quarter valued at about $63,486,000. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC grew its position in shares of United Airlines by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 9,457,587 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $539,650,000 after acquiring an additional 1,040,589 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.69% of the company's stock.

About United Airlines

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.