JetBlue Airways Corporation $JBLU Stock Bought by Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC

Key Points

• Counterpoint Mutual Funds increased its JetBlue stake by 91.1% in the third quarter, holding 2.30 million shares valued at approximately $9.7 million. Institutional investors collectively own 83.71% of the airline’s stock.
• Analysts remain cautious, with eight Hold ratings and five Sell ratings, resulting in a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of $5.02.
• JetBlue shares opened at $2.93, near their one-year low of $2.91, while the company continues to face financial pressure with a negative net margin, high leverage, and an expected full-year loss of $2.68 per share.

Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC raised its holdings in JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ:JBLU - Free Report) by 91.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,297,994 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,095,610 shares during the period. JetBlue Airways makes up about 0.8% of Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC owned approximately 0.61% of JetBlue Airways worth $9,721,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in JBLU. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of JetBlue Airways during the 2nd quarter worth $20,022,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in JetBlue Airways by 509.5% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 649,600 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $2,871,000 after acquiring an additional 543,017 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd raised its stake in JetBlue Airways by 95.6% during the second quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 553,212 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $3,170,000 after acquiring an additional 270,358 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of JetBlue Airways during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,725,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in JetBlue Airways by 235.9% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,246,200 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $9,928,000 after purchasing an additional 1,577,500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.71% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of JetBlue Airways from $7.00 to $5.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of JetBlue Airways from $3.50 to $4.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of JetBlue Airways in a report on Monday, July 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on JetBlue Airways from $3.50 to $4.50 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Citigroup raised JetBlue Airways from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $5.30 to $4.50 in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, JetBlue Airways currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $5.02.

JetBlue Airways Stock Down 7.0%

Shares of NASDAQ JBLU opened at $2.93 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $4.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $5.00. The firm has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a PE ratio of -1.23 and a beta of 1.77. JetBlue Airways Corporation has a 1 year low of $2.91 and a 1 year high of $6.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.04, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.63.

JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The transportation company reported ($0.66) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.69) by $0.03. JetBlue Airways had a negative net margin of 9.32% and a negative return on equity of 45.92%. The firm had revenue of $2.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.21) EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that JetBlue Airways Corporation will post -2.68 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at JetBlue Airways

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 transaction of $444,977.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 211,099 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,215,930.24. This trade represents a 26.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 83,253 shares of company stock worth $474,477 in the last quarter. 2.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About JetBlue Airways

JetBlue Airways Corp. NASDAQ: JBLU is a passenger airline that provides scheduled air transportation in the United States, the Caribbean, Latin America and select destinations in Canada and Europe. The company serves leisure and business travelers through a network centered on major U.S. airports, including New York, Boston, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando.

JetBlue offers multiple travel products, including its core economy service and premium Mint cabins on select routes. Its onboard offerings have included complimentary snacks and beverages, seatback entertainment, Wi-Fi and additional-legroom seating options marketed as Even More Space.

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