American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL) Reaches New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ:AAL)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday after Evercore ISI raised their price target on the stock to $18.00. Evercore ISI currently has a hold rating on the stock. American Airlines Group traded as high as $18.36 and last traded at $18.36, with a volume of 3156003 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.60.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. BNP Paribas raised American Airlines Group to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of American Airlines Group from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of American Airlines Group in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of American Airlines Group from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price target on American Airlines Group from $14.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Airlines Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $18.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Robert D. Isom, Jr. sold 102,441 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.21, for a total value of $1,763,009.61. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,967,984 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $51,079,004.64. This trade represents a 3.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in American Airlines Group by 56.2% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,533 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 911 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Airlines Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in American Airlines Group in the third quarter valued at about $55,000. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in American Airlines Group by 55.8% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,152 shares of the airline’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 2,204 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of American Airlines Group by 44.3% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,932 shares of the airline’s stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 3,047 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.44% of the company’s stock.

American Airlines Group Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $12.08 billion, a PE ratio of 55.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 1.35. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $15.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.75.

American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The airline reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.14. American Airlines Group had a negative return on equity of 18.62% and a net margin of 0.51%. The company had revenue of $13.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.38 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that American Airlines Group Inc. will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

About American Airlines Group

American Airlines Group Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a network air carrier. The company provides scheduled air transportation services for passengers and cargo through its hubs in Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Washington, DC, as well as through partner gateways in London, Doha, Madrid, Seattle/Tacoma, Sydney, and Tokyo.