Short Interest in JetBlue Airways Co. (NASDAQ:JBLU) Rises By 26.7%

JetBlue Airways Co. (NASDAQ:JBLU) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 66,720,000 shares, an increase of 26.7% from the February 28th total of 52,650,000 shares. Approximately 22.3% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 22,160,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Nik Mittal bought 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $6.14 per share, with a total value of $614,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 116,443 shares in the company, valued at $714,960.02. This trade represents a 608.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Ursula L. Hurley sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.50, for a total transaction of $112,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 41,833 shares in the company, valued at $313,747.50. This trade represents a 26.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On JetBlue Airways

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of JetBlue Airways by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 30,416 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $239,000 after buying an additional 1,823 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its position in JetBlue Airways by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 22,613 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $178,000 after acquiring an additional 2,095 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC increased its stake in JetBlue Airways by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 23,181 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $182,000 after acquiring an additional 2,284 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in JetBlue Airways by 130.8% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,478 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 2,538 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of JetBlue Airways by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 32,679 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 2,666 shares during the last quarter. 83.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

JetBlue Airways Price Performance

Shares of JetBlue Airways stock traded up $0.26 on Wednesday, hitting $5.04. 27,112,105 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,500,784. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.08. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $6.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.15 and a beta of 1.80. JetBlue Airways has a 1-year low of $4.44 and a 1-year high of $8.31.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The transportation company reported ($0.21) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.42) by $0.21. JetBlue Airways had a negative return on equity of 9.31% and a negative net margin of 8.57%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.19) EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that JetBlue Airways will post -0.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $8.00 target price on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group lowered their price target on JetBlue Airways from $5.50 to $5.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $6.50 price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on JetBlue Airways from $8.00 to $6.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of JetBlue Airways from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, JetBlue Airways currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.33.

About JetBlue Airways

JetBlue Airways Corporation provides air transportation services. The company operates a fleet of Airbus A321, Airbus A220, Airbus A321neo, Airbus A320 Restyled, Airbus A320, Airbus A321 with Mint, Airbus A321neo with Mint, Airbus A321neoLR with Mint, and Embraer E190 aircraft. It also serves 100 destinations across the United States, the Caribbean and Latin America, Canada, and Europe.