Picton Mahoney Asset Management Raises Holdings in SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW)

Key Points

• Picton Mahoney Asset Management has significantly increased its holdings in SkyWest, Inc. by 201.1%, acquiring an additional 10,505 shares valued at approximately $1.37 million.
• Analysts show strong support for SkyWest, with multiple upgrades and a target price increase, resulting in an average price target of $126.75 and a consensus rating of "Buy."
• SkyWest reported impressive quarterly earnings, with an EPS of $2.91, exceeding estimates by $0.57, and a 19.4% revenue growth compared to the previous year.

Picton Mahoney Asset Management increased its position in SkyWest, Inc. (NASDAQ:SKYW - Free Report) by 201.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,729 shares of the transportation company's stock after acquiring an additional 10,505 shares during the quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management's holdings in SkyWest were worth $1,374,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in SkyWest by 1,075.6% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 60,181 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $5,302,000 after purchasing an additional 55,062 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of SkyWest by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,322 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $290,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in SkyWest by 11.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,741 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $152,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of SkyWest during the first quarter worth approximately $1,007,000. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. bought a new stake in SkyWest during the first quarter worth about $209,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SKYW. The Goldman Sachs Group raised SkyWest from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their price target for the company from $119.00 to $117.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on shares of SkyWest from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on SkyWest from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded SkyWest from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $126.75.

SkyWest Stock Down 5.9%

NASDAQ SKYW traded down $6.85 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $109.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 414,949 shares, compared to its average volume of 413,281. The company has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a PE ratio of 11.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. SkyWest, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.61 and a 52 week high of $135.57. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $105.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.10.

SkyWest (NASDAQ:SKYW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $979.95 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.82 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 19.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that SkyWest, Inc. will post 9.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SkyWest declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 7th that allows the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the transportation company to purchase up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other SkyWest news, Director James L. Welch sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.25, for a total value of $1,182,500.00. Following the sale, the director owned 37,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,460,035.25. This trade represents a 20.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Russell A. Childs sold 17,000 shares of SkyWest stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.91, for a total transaction of $1,715,470.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 449,242 shares of the company's stock, valued at $45,333,010.22. This represents a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 83,000 shares of company stock worth $9,004,130 in the last ninety days. 2.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

SkyWest 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.