United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) Short Interest Down 18.4% in January

United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,810,000 shares, a drop of 18.4% from the January 15th total of 18,140,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 5,640,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Insider Activity at United Airlines

In other news, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.12, for a total value of $5,707,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 63,599 shares in the company, valued at $6,049,536.88. This trade represents a 48.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Airlines

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC increased its holdings in United Airlines by 79.5% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 13,607 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $776,000 after purchasing an additional 6,027 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Airlines during the third quarter valued at $344,000. Creative Planning grew its position in shares of United Airlines by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 132,807 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $7,578,000 after buying an additional 18,767 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its position in shares of United Airlines by 19.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 5,928 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $338,000 after acquiring an additional 982 shares during the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its holdings in United Airlines by 16.3% during the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 7,527 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $429,000 after buying an additional 1,057 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.69% of the company’s stock.

United Airlines Price Performance

UAL traded up $3.37 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $104.26. 5,205,191 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,491,480. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $102.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $77.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.43. United Airlines has a one year low of $37.02 and a one year high of $116.00.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The transportation company reported $3.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.96 by $0.30. United Airlines had a return on equity of 32.26% and a net margin of 5.52%. The business had revenue of $14.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.00 EPS. United Airlines’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that United Airlines will post 13.09 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on UAL shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of United Airlines from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Dbs Bank upgraded United Airlines from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 target price (up from $120.00) on shares of United Airlines in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on United Airlines from $108.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on United Airlines from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $113.88.

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.