Traders Purchase Large Volume of Put Options on American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL)

American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ:AAL) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Traders acquired 119,587 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 43% compared to the typical volume of 83,854 put options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $19.00 target price on shares of American Airlines Group in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of American Airlines Group from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. UBS Group dropped their price target on American Airlines Group from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Melius Research lowered American Airlines Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $15.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on American Airlines Group from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.41.

Insider Transactions at American Airlines Group

In other American Airlines Group news, SVP Angela Owens sold 40,077 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.26, for a total transaction of $611,575.02. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 178,799 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,728,472.74. This trade represents a 18.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of American Airlines Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Airlines Group by 4.5% during the first quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,205 shares of the airline’s stock worth $217,000 after purchasing an additional 871 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Airlines Group by 33.1% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 3,816 shares of the airline’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 949 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Airlines Group by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 20,631 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 966 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Airlines Group by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 70,836 shares of the airline’s stock worth $1,280,000 after purchasing an additional 972 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in American Airlines Group by 8.2% during the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 12,820 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $143,000 after buying an additional 977 shares in the last quarter. 52.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Airlines Group Price Performance

NASDAQ AAL traded up $0.51 on Wednesday, hitting $12.62. The company had a trading volume of 35,899,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 77,287,305. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $13.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $13.91. American Airlines Group has a 12-month low of $10.09 and a 12-month high of $18.79. The company has a market capitalization of $8.35 billion, a PE ratio of -25.74 and a beta of 1.37.

American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The airline reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.12. American Airlines Group had a negative net margin of 0.56% and a negative return on equity of 9.11%. The business had revenue of $16.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 16.3% on a year-over-year basis. American Airlines Group has set its Q3 2026 guidance at -0.700–0.100 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at -0.650-0.650 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Airlines Group will post -0.94 EPS for the current year.

About American Airlines Group

American Airlines Group Inc is a holding company whose principal subsidiary, American Airlines, provides scheduled passenger air transportation and air cargo services. The company operates a large mainline network under the American Airlines brand and offers regional service through carriers operating as American Eagle. Its services include domestic and international flights, connecting passengers through a network of hubs and focus cities.

American Airlines serves destinations throughout the United States, as well as markets in Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America, Europe, Asia and other international regions.