Empirical Finance LLC Has $1.06 Million Position in United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL)

Empirical Finance LLC trimmed its holdings in United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) by 50.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,920 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 11,208 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in United Airlines were worth $1,060,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Winch Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in United Airlines in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Airlines in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of United Airlines in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in United Airlines by 25.0% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 710 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in United Airlines by 108.6% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 753 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. 69.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Airlines Price Performance

United Airlines stock opened at $106.08 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.25, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.43. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $37.02 and a one year high of $116.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $101.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $75.77.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The transportation company reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.96 by $0.30. United Airlines had a return on equity of 32.26% and a net margin of 5.52%. The business had revenue of $14.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.00 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that United Airlines Holdings, Inc. will post 13.09 EPS for the current year.

United Airlines declared that its Board of Directors has approved 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 reacquire up to 7.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 target price (up previously from $120.00) on shares of United Airlines in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $119.00 price objective on shares of United Airlines in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Melius Research raised United Airlines to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of United Airlines from $75.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $113.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of the business’s 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.