United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) Shares Acquired by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,523 shares of the transportation company’s stock after purchasing an additional 665 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in United Airlines were worth $1,216,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 0.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,320,253 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $588,874,000 after buying an additional 78,470 shares during the last quarter. Sanders Capital LLC increased its position in United Airlines by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 9,457,587 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $539,650,000 after acquiring an additional 1,040,589 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in United Airlines by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,311,220 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $477,526,000 after acquiring an additional 168,498 shares during the last quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP lifted its position in United Airlines by 176.1% during the 3rd quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 4,245,120 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $242,227,000 after acquiring an additional 2,707,442 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of United Airlines by 41.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,112,583 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $177,604,000 after purchasing an additional 908,558 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. TD Cowen upped their price target on United Airlines from $142.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $119.00 target price on shares of United Airlines in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $130.00 price target (up from $120.00) on shares of United Airlines in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of United Airlines from $98.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on United Airlines from $75.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $110.20.

Insider Activity at United Airlines

In other United Airlines news, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were 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 directly owns 63,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,049,536.88. This trade represents a 48.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kate Gebo sold 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, 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. Corporate insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

United Airlines Stock Performance

Shares of UAL opened at $106.34 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $99.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $71.90. The stock has a market cap of $34.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.28, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.44. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.02 and a 12-month high of $116.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The transportation company reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.96 by $0.30. The firm 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 32.26% and a net margin of 5.52%. United Airlines’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.00 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that United Airlines Holdings, Inc. will post 12.7 EPS for the current fiscal 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 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the transportation company to buy up to 7.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually 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.