United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 19,450,000 shares, a growth of 19.1% from the March 15th total of 16,330,000 shares. Approximately 6.0% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 8,830,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.2 days.

United Airlines Price Performance

NASDAQ UAL traded up $1.02 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $69.05. The company had a trading volume of 7,006,337 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,553,600. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $87.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.32, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.19. United Airlines has a 52 week low of $37.02 and a 52 week high of $116.00.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The transportation company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.16. United Airlines had a net margin of 5.52% and a return on equity of 32.26%. The company had revenue of $13.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.47 billion. Equities research analysts expect that United Airlines will post 12.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Airlines

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UAL. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at about $137,000. Longbow Finance SA bought a new stake in United Airlines in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,359,000. KBC Group NV bought a new position in shares of United Airlines in the fourth quarter worth approximately $485,000. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in United Airlines by 293.7% in the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 23,458 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $2,278,000 after acquiring an additional 17,499 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Islay Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in United Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at about $790,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.69% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays lowered their price target on United Airlines from $140.00 to $94.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Raymond James cut shares of United Airlines from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on United Airlines from $90.00 to $81.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on United Airlines from $59.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $97.14.

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.