United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.30 EPS

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The transportation company reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.96 by $0.30, RTT News reports. United Airlines had a return on equity of 30.72% and a net margin of 4.94%. The business had revenue of $14.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.00 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

United Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of United Airlines stock opened at $110.52 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $98.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.44. United Airlines has a fifty-two week low of $37.02 and a fifty-two week high of $110.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,012 shares in the company, valued at $3,218,565.28. This represents a 30.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of United Airlines stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was 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 approximately $6,049,536.88. This represents a 48.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on UAL shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of United Airlines from $75.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of United Airlines from $98.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $139.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their target price on United Airlines from $85.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $106.45.

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

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.