United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) Given New $150.00 Price Target at Barclays

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) had its price objective upped by Barclays from $75.00 to $150.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the transportation company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Susquehanna boosted their target price on United Airlines from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on United Airlines from $80.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on United Airlines from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on United Airlines from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of United Airlines from $70.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Airlines presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.61.

United Airlines Stock Performance

United Airlines stock traded up $0.44 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $91.60. 1,745,531 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,472,467. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.79. United Airlines has a 12-month low of $37.02 and a 12-month high of $93.33. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $66.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.19. The stock has a market cap of $30.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.39.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.10 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $14.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.76 billion. United Airlines had a net margin of 4.94% and a return on equity of 30.72%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that United Airlines will post 10.23 EPS for the current year.

United Airlines announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, October 15th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the transportation company to purchase up to 7.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Airlines

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 2.4% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 18,502,761 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $885,912,000 after buying an additional 429,501 shares in the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC raised its position in United Airlines by 12.4% during the third quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 9,457,587 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $539,650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,040,589 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in United Airlines by 29.1% during 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 acquiring an additional 1,263,604 shares during the last quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP increased its stake in 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 buying an additional 2,707,442 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in United Airlines by 41.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,112,583 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $177,604,000 after purchasing an additional 908,558 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.