United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.30 EPS

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The transportation company reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.96 by $0.30, RTT News reports. The firm had revenue of $14.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.40 billion. United Airlines had a return on equity of 34.03% and a net margin of 5.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.00 earnings per share.

United Airlines Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of United Airlines stock opened at $107.97 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. United Airlines has a twelve month low of $37.02 and a twelve month high of $116.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.51 billion, a PE ratio of 11.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $98.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $70.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Airlines

In other news, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 63,599 shares in the company, valued at $6,049,536.88. The trade was a 48.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 40,012 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,218,565.28. This represents a 30.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on UAL shares. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of United Airlines from $90.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 30th. UBS Group boosted their target price 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. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of United Airlines from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on United Airlines from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $106.45.

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