Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:VLRS) Short Interest Down 15.6% in April

Key Points

• Short interest down 15.6% in April to 2,498,832 shares (about 2.2% of shares outstanding), implying a short-interest ratio of roughly 4.2 days based on average daily volume.
• Controladora Vuela reported Q1 EPS of ($0.62), missing estimates and remaining unprofitable with a negative net margin and return on equity; analysts expect around -1.6 EPS for the current year.
• Several firms have trimmed targets or ratings and the stock carries an average consensus rating of Hold with a $9.04 target; shares last traded near $7.26 (market cap ~$846M), inside a 12-month range of $3.68–$10.80.

Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:VLRS - Get Free Report) saw a large drop in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,498,832 shares, a drop of 15.6% from the March 31st total of 2,959,211 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 589,480 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.2 days. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion in the 3rd quarter valued at $490,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion during the 3rd quarter worth $417,000. Inspire Advisors LLC raised its position in Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 28,275 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $203,000 after purchasing an additional 2,594 shares during the last quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC raised its position in Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion by 74.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC now owns 64,280 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $462,000 after purchasing an additional 27,504 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 13,921 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 2,389 shares during the last quarter. 53.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion Price Performance

Shares of VLRS traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $7.26. The stock had a trading volume of 187,804 shares, compared to its average volume of 760,717. Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion has a 12 month low of $3.68 and a 12 month high of $10.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $846.28 million, a PE ratio of -6.78 and a beta of 1.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.67. The company's 50-day moving average is $7.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $8.01.

Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion (NYSE:VLRS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The transportation company reported ($0.62) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.60) by ($0.02). Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion had a negative net margin of 3.96% and a negative return on equity of 50.26%. The firm had revenue of $770.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.61 million. Research analysts expect that Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion will post -1.6 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on VLRS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion from $11.00 to $10.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Barclays decreased their price target on Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $7.60 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $9.04.

Controladora Vuela Compania de Aviacion Company Profile

Controladora Vuela Compañia de Aviacion, SAB de CV NYSE: VLRS is a Mexico-based airline holding company whose primary business is the operation of low-cost scheduled air transportation services. Through its principal operating subsidiary, Volaris, the company provides passenger and cargo flights on domestic and international routes. Its business model emphasizes unbundled ancillary services and point-to-point operations designed to offer competitive fares across its network.

Volaris serves more than 120 routes linking major metropolitan areas and secondary cities in Mexico, the United States and Central America.

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