Douglas Lane & Associates LLC Trims Position in United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL)

Douglas Lane & Associates LLC cut its holdings in shares of United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 465,346 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 38,762 shares during the period. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC’s holdings in United Airlines were worth $45,185,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in UAL. Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in United Airlines during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of United Airlines during the second quarter worth $30,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of United Airlines in the third quarter worth about $36,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in United Airlines by 108.6% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 753 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC raised its holdings in United Airlines by 3,504.8% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 757 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 736 shares during the last quarter. 69.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Torbjorn J. Enqvist sold 14,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.00, for a total value of $1,044,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 30,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,190,744. The trade was a 32.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.44, for a total transaction 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 92,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,158,900. Insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

United Airlines Stock Performance

NASDAQ:UAL traded up $2.32 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $103.53. The stock had a trading volume of 2,850,771 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,447,045. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.49, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.44. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.02 and a twelve month high of $105.09. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $93.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.79.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The transportation company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.10 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $14.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.76 billion. United Airlines had a return on equity of 30.72% and a net margin of 4.94%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.65 EPS. On average, analysts expect that United Airlines Holdings, Inc. will post 10.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

UAL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on United Airlines from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on United Airlines from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Melius Research raised shares of United Airlines to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $70.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, United Airlines has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $104.68.

United Airlines 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.