United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) Updates Q1 Earnings Guidance

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) updated its first quarter earnings guidance on Tuesday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of $0.75-1.25 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.53. United Airlines also updated its FY25 guidance to $11.50-13.50 EPS.

United Airlines Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UAL traded up $3.14 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $110.52. The company had a trading volume of 12,276,837 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,451,333. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $69.80. United Airlines has a twelve month low of $37.02 and a twelve month high of $110.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.44.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last announced its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $14.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. United Airlines had a return on equity of 30.72% and a net margin of 4.94%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.00 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that United Airlines will post 10.34 earnings per share for the current year.

United Airlines announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, October 15th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the transportation company to repurchase up to 7.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on UAL. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Susquehanna raised their price target on United Airlines from $85.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on United Airlines from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of United Airlines from $98.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of United Airlines from $88.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $106.45.

Insider Activity at United Airlines

In other news, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of United Airlines stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.44, for a total value of $1,407,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,218,565.28. The trade was a 30.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.12, for a total transaction of $5,707,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 63,599 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,049,536.88. This trade represents a 48.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.