Neuberger Berman Group LLC Raises Stock Holdings in SkyWest, Inc. $SKYW

Key Points

• Neuberger Berman Group LLC increased its holdings in SkyWest, Inc. by 128.5%, acquiring an additional 2,620 shares, which brought their total to 4,659 shares valued at approximately $407,000.
• SkyWest reported $2.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, significantly exceeding the consensus estimate of $2.34, with revenues also surpassing estimates at $1.04 billion.
• The company initiated a $250 million stock buyback program, reflecting management's belief that the company's shares are undervalued, and an indication of its financial health.

Neuberger Berman Group LLC lifted its position in shares of SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW - Free Report) by 128.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,659 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 2,620 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC's holdings in SkyWest were worth $407,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in SkyWest by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 564,732 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $49,341,000 after purchasing an additional 21,723 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 472,763 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $47,338,000 after buying an additional 51,607 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of SkyWest in the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,474,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 415,296 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $41,584,000 after buying an additional 57,547 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oberweis Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of SkyWest by 14.9% in the 4th quarter. Oberweis Asset Management Inc. now owns 319,150 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $31,956,000 after buying an additional 41,500 shares during the last quarter. 81.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SKYW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on SkyWest from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on SkyWest from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded SkyWest from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $126.75.

SkyWest Stock Down 2.2%

Shares of SKYW stock traded down $2.5270 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $113.6330. The company's stock had a trading volume of 95,752 shares, compared to its average volume of 398,979. SkyWest, Inc. has a 52-week low of $72.70 and a 52-week high of $135.57. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $108.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $100.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a current ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $4.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.55, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.98.

SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The transportation company reported $2.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.34 by $0.57. SkyWest had a return on equity of 16.69% and a net margin of 10.62%.The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $979.95 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.82 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that SkyWest, Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SkyWest announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 7th that permits the company to buyback $250.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the transportation company to reacquire up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at SkyWest

In related news, insider Wade J. Steel sold 17,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.26, for a total transaction of $2,010,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 102,416 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,111,716.16. This represents a 14.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Eric Woodward sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.67, for a total value of $816,690.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 47,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,577,992.70. This trade represents a 12.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 136,186 shares of company stock valued at $15,201,258 in the last 90 days. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

SkyWest Company Profile

SkyWest, Inc is the holding company for two scheduled passenger airline operations and an aircraft leasing company. SkyWest's airline companies provide commercial air service in cities throughout North America with nearly 3,000 daily flights carrying more than 53 million passengers annually. SkyWest Airlines operates through partnerships with United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and Alaska Airlines.