Zacks Research Upgrades LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) to Hold

LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on LTM. Citigroup raised LATAM Airlines Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $53.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $72.60 price objective on shares of LATAM Airlines Group in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley upgraded LATAM Airlines Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $61.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Barclays decreased their target price on LATAM Airlines Group from $75.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LATAM Airlines Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $64.40.

LATAM Airlines Group Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:LTM opened at $51.03 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $49.89 and its 200 day moving average is $52.86. LATAM Airlines Group has a 12-month low of $36.41 and a 12-month high of $70.42. The stock has a market cap of $14.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.78, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 3.62.

LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The transportation company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.66. LATAM Airlines Group had a return on equity of 127.75% and a net margin of 11.03%.The business had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.96 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that LATAM Airlines Group will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LATAM Airlines Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LTM. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in LATAM Airlines Group by 49.1% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 747 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in shares of LATAM Airlines Group by 684.3% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,302 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 1,136 shares during the period. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new position in shares of LATAM Airlines Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $78,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC purchased a new position in LATAM Airlines Group during the second quarter valued at $90,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in LATAM Airlines Group by 113.8% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 3,194 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $100,000 after buying an additional 1,700 shares during the last quarter.

About LATAM Airlines Group

LATAM Airlines Group SA is a Chilean-based airline holding company formed in 2012 through the merger of LAN Airlines of Chile and TAM Linhas Aéreas of Brazil. The Group offers passenger and cargo air transportation services across South America and beyond, operating under a multi‐brand strategy that encompasses several nationally recognized carriers. Headquartered in Santiago, Chile, LATAM is structured to serve diverse market segments with full-service, premium and low‐cost offerings.

The core business activities of LATAM Airlines Group include scheduled domestic and international passenger flights, air cargo services and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) capabilities through its technical divisions.