JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) Price Target Lowered to $4.00 at UBS Group

Key Points

• UBS Group lowered JetBlue Airways’ price target to $4.00 from $5.00 and maintained a “sell” rating, implying 8.57% downside from the stock’s $4.38 opening price.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: JetBlue has an average “Reduce” rating and a consensus target price of $5.46, with six analysts rating it “Hold” and six rating it “Sell.”
• JetBlue reported a quarterly loss of $0.66 per share, though it narrowly beat estimates and posted $2.70 billion in revenue; the company continues to face weak profitability, including a negative net margin of 9.32% and negative return on equity.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU - Get Free Report) had its price objective dropped by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $5.00 to $4.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "sell" rating on the transportation company's stock. UBS Group's price objective points to a potential downside of 8.57% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lowered shares of JetBlue Airways from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $6.60 to $5.30 in a report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of JetBlue Airways in a report on Friday, July 17th. Bank of America boosted their target price on JetBlue Airways from $3.50 to $4.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered JetBlue Airways from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of JetBlue Airways in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, JetBlue Airways has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $5.46.

JetBlue Airways Stock Performance

Shares of JetBlue Airways stock opened at $4.38 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a PE ratio of -1.83 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.13. JetBlue Airways has a one year low of $3.87 and a one year high of $6.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.70.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The transportation company reported ($0.66) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.69) by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.69 billion. JetBlue Airways had a negative net margin of 9.32% and a negative return on equity of 45.92%. The company's revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.21) EPS. Research analysts expect that JetBlue Airways will post -2.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Ursula Hurley sold 77,253 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.76, for a total value of $444,977.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 211,099 shares in the company, valued at $1,215,930.24. This trade represents a 26.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 81,253 shares of company stock valued at $465,897. 2.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On JetBlue Airways

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of JetBlue Airways by 85.6% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 12,124,292 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $55,166,000 after acquiring an additional 5,591,470 shares during the last quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of JetBlue Airways by 17.2% during the first quarter. U S Global Investors Inc. now owns 5,542,536 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $24,498,000 after purchasing an additional 813,782 shares during the last quarter. Par Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of JetBlue Airways by 105.3% during the second quarter. Par Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,487,425 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $23,212,000 after purchasing an additional 2,814,870 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in JetBlue Airways by 10.1% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,513,312 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $19,091,000 after purchasing an additional 412,921 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in JetBlue Airways during the second quarter valued at $20,022,000. 83.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

JetBlue Airways Company Profile

JetBlue Airways Corporation is a low-cost scheduled passenger airline headquartered in Long Island City, New York. Since commencing service in 2000, the carrier has built a reputation for combining competitive fares with enhanced onboard amenities, including free in-flight entertainment, complimentary snacks and beverages, and onboard Wi-Fi. JetBlue operates a single fleet type of Airbus A320 family and Embraer 190 aircraft, which supports its focus on efficiency and operational consistency.

The airline's core offerings include economy-class travel and a premium business-class product known as Mint, which features lie-flat seats, curated culinary options and elevated service on select transcontinental and international routes.

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